Finland’s Marimekko has hired Natacha Defrens as senior sales VP

Finnish design house Marimekko has appointed Natacha Defrance, 48, as senior vice president, sales, region east and member of the management group. At the same time, General Counsel AC Weseri, 39, has also been appointed as a member of the management group. They will both report to President and CEO Tina Alahuta-Casco.

MS (Marketing and Sales) Defrance joined Marimekko in June 2020 and served as Market Area Head for Greater China, South Korea and Southeast Asia. Since October 2022, he has also served as Interim Senior Vice President, Sales, Region East. Before joining Marimekko, he worked mostly in Asia in various leadership positions in retail and international marketing for luxury and premium brands such as Lacoste, Christian Dior Couture, Van Cleef & Arpels and Chanel, Marimekko said in a media release.

“I am delighted that Natacha will take on this greater role in expanding Marimekko’s presence in the Asia-Pacific region. During the strategy period of 2023-2027, we intend to focus on scaling our business and growth especially in international markets. Natacha’s extensive experience in developing omnichannel retailers and operations in Asia will help us accelerate growth in this most important geographic region for our international growth,” said President and CEO Tina Alahuta-Casco.

Design house Marimekko has appointed Natacha Defrance, 48, as senior vice president, sales, region east and member of the management group. At the same time, General Counsel AC Weseri, 39, has also been appointed as a member of the management group. They will both report to President and CEO Tina Alahuta-Casco. DeFrance joined Marimekko in June 2020.

As previously announced, Marimekko’s sales leadership in the management group is divided into two geographic regions, Region East and Region West. The region consists of the East Asia-Pacific region, while the region consists of Finland, Scandinavia, EMEA and North America in the West.

LLM Wessery joined Marimekko in October 2021 and serves as the company’s general counsel. Prior to that he served as Lead Counsel and Senior Legal Counsel at Stora Enso Corporation, Legal Counsel at Altea Corporation and Associate at Attorneys Ltd. Roschier.

“As Marimekko’s business grows and becomes more international, the management and protection of intellectual property rights and the role and importance of ensuring compliance in an overall evolving regulatory environment are underlined. I am thrilled to welcome Essi to the management group,” added Alahuta-Casco.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)