Freeman named president at Black Diamond

Outdoor equipment and apparel company Black Diamond named former Sony and Gap executive Zeena Freeman as president and eventual CEO.



The Salt Lake City-based manufacturer of outdoor performance equipment and apparel said Freeman would join the company as president, reporting to co-founder and CEO Peter Metcalf, who she will succeed in that role next June.



"Zeena brings Black Diamond a wonderful combination of leadership, strategic thinking, brand management, and consumer product and omnichannel expertise," Metcalf said. "She is precisely the kind of strategic merchant and dynamic brand leader that we have been seeking, and we see her perfectly positioned to lead Black Diamond's fastest growing brands through an omnichannel environment over the next decade.”



Freeman joins Black Diamond from Sony where she was general manager of global retail responsible for the brand’s worldwide stores and e-commerce business. She also served as the SVP of consumer business development for Sony Corporation of America and was a member of the global sales and marketing team in Tokyo and reported directly to the company's chairman and CEO.



Prior to Sony, Freeman served as CEO of PEOPLE, an Indian fashion and lifestyle brand that is part of the $40 billion multinational Aditya Birla Group. She was responsible for creating a new specialty retail apparel business with global standards in design, merchandising and retail management, and oversaw its growth from inception to the roll out of stores in key cities in India.



Freeman also spent nearly a decade with Gap where she held a series of roles including senior merchandising and management positions in Banana Republic Factory Stores, babyGap and Old Navy Canada.



"I'm thrilled to be joining the Black Diamond team. The Black Diamond Equipment, POC and PIEPS brands have been built over more than half a century by serving its passionate customers through innovative and beautifully designed products that also deliver exceptional quality and brilliant functionality,” Freeman said. “These brands offer a unique opportunity, anchored in the authenticity with which they have served the professional and core communities, and in existing and emerging areas such as apparel and personal accessories, to meet the growing, global consumer demand for an athletic, outdoor approach to living one's life.”