Arne Arens to lead Boardriders after leaving The North Face

VF Corporation announced in October that Arne Arens would be departing The North Face after serving nearly four years as global brand president, and now we know where the outdoor industry executive will begin his next chapter.

On March 1, Arens will become CEO of Boardriders Inc., a California-based, private equity-backed company whose portfolio includes seven action sports and lifestyle brands: Quiksilver, Billabong, Roxy, DC Shoes, RVCA, Element, and VonZipper.

He replaces David Tanner, who served as the Boardriders CEO since February 2018 and whose appointment came after Boardriders’ previous CEO, Pierre Agnes, went missing at sea off the French coast.

“I am thrilled to be joining Boardriders not only for the opportunity to lead its portfolio of world-class brands in their next phase of growth but also to work with its amazing and talented global team,” Arens said in a statement. “As a former athlete and avid boardrider myself, I appreciate the passionate communities, culture, and lifestyle our brands represent. And as an experienced action sports executive, I know this industry, its people, and markets and am certain the best is yet to come for our brands.”

The North Face, one of the outdoor industry’s most recognizable legacy brands, thrived under Arens’ leadership. When he took over in May 2017, the company’s calendar-year revenue was around $2.3 billion. He helped grow that total 13 percent to $2.6 billion by 2019, according to materials distributed at the company’s September 2019 Investor Day.

Before serving as The North Face’s global brand president, Arens worked in the company’s EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) division, where he spent five years as its general manager. Before joining TNF, Arens spent almost eight years at Nike in a variety of sales and marketing positions.

VF in October said it had appointed Steve Murray as global brand president for The North Face, replacing Arens.