Who’s on the Move: Columbia names new senior VP; Big Agnes hires and promotes 9, Icebug expands in North America and more …

Columbia Sportswear Co., in Portland, Ore., named Russ Hopcus as its senior vice president of North American sales. In the newly created position, Hopcus will develop and execute wholesale sales and distribution strategies for the company’s Columbia and Sorel brands in the U.S. and Canada. Hopcus previously served as vice president of global sales and market development at Keen Footwear since 2010, and before that was president of Icebreaker North America and senior vice president of U.S. sales at Adidas USA. In a related move, Joe Craig, Columbia national apparel sales manager, was promoted to vice president of U.S. apparel sales for the Columbia brand, reporting to Hopcus.

Icebreaker, in New Zealand, promoted Ladislav Masek promoted to serve as company’s Eastern Europe country manager. Masek will be responsible for strategically developing and implementing Icebreaker’s wholesale business strategy in Eastern Europe, and integrating Icebreaker´s global retail and eCommerce strategy in the territory. He will be based in Icebreaker’s office in Prague, Czech Republic.

Baffin, in Ontario, Canada, added four positions to coincide with a new 67,000-square-foot warehouse. Chris Kabas and Chris Penner joined the company’s sales department. Kabas will deal primarily with industrial sales, while Penner will be focus on the outdoor market in southern Ontario. Alicia Gies and Kristi Boulton joined the company’s marketing department. Gies will take on her new role as Baffin’s communications coordinator, while Boulton will be styling the brand as the company’s graphic designer.

Icebug, in Sweden, continues to increase its North American presence, hiring four new rep groups in the United States. Andy Anderson and Keith Reis of the Sanitas Sale Group will cover Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico. Dane Stephenson of Leading Edge Northwest will serve Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Alaska. JJ Anderson of Pacific Recreations Sales Inc. will handle California, Arizona and Nevada. John Ulvilden of Maelstrom Sports will serve Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Ohio, Michigan and Indiana. Icebug currently is interviewing to fill Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and Canadian territories for the Icebug Footwear line and ArchFlex Insoles.

Bomber Gear, in Greenville, S.C., hired Martin Davis-Skjøth as its new head of design. Davis-Skjøth previously worked with Nike International as a product designer, at Reebok International as a lead/senior designer and at the online trend agency WGSN as head of sport, where he was responsible for interpreting and communicating global active wear trends. Most recently, since 2010, Davis-Skjøth was men’s design manager for Under Amour’s inline sport and combined training performance apparel, the company’s largest category.

Backbone Media, in Carbondale, Colo., named Ian Anderson as a partner. Anderson, who serves as the firm’s PR director, joins partners Penn Newhard, Nate Simmons and Greg Williams in leading the agency.

Big Agnes, in Steamboat Springs, Colo., announced five new hires and four staff promotions. Greg Fritz was hired as Big Agnes’ first director of finance and will work closely with the accounting team to meet the demands of increased workload. Linda Curzon will serve as the company’s first dealer and customer service manager after serving in a similar role at SmartWool. Adam Eimers, also from SmartWool, will serve as inventory analyst. Sally Gentling joins the design team as a product developer, formerly serving as a designer with Patagonia. Noah Freed will serve as the direct sales coordinator. Chris Tamucci has been promoted to the newly created position of director of operations and will oversee all IT, warehouse, customer service and operations staff. Other promotions include: Melissa Minter, product line manager; Denton Turner, customer service; and Jonathan Finnegan, customer service.

Yeti Coolers, in Austin, Texas, hired Corey Maynard as its new vice president of marketing. Maynard, who previously worked as the vice president of marketing at Gerber Legendary Blades, will oversee all aspects of brand development, product line management, e-commerce, and global marketing for Yeti.

Zeal Optics, in Boulder, Colo., named Mike Lewis as digital marketing manager. In the new position, Lewis will manage global digital strategy for the brand, which recently spanned to more than 25 countries. Lewis previously served as the editor in chief of Transworld Business for more than five years.

Hydro Flask, in Bend, Ore. named Catalyst Marketing, headed up by Chris Mathias, as its new rep group for the Rocky Mountain states including Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and New Mexico.

Palladium, in Westlake Village, Calif., appointed Matthew Pantoja as the brand’s senior director of marketing. Pantoja will oversee the brand’s global direction and development of its seasonal campaigns. Most recently, Pantoja served as head of entertainment for Reebok.

Have news of a new hire or promotion within the outdoor industry? Let us know at news@snewsnet.com.

–Compiled by David Clucas