Steve Madden appoints Liz Rodbell to new role on senior management team

By

Robin Driver

Published
Oct 1, 2018

NYC-based fashion footwear company Steve Madden announced on Monday that it has appointed Liz Rodbell to the newly created role of group president of retail, accessories and licensing.
 

In the new role, Rodbell will oversee activities relating to retail, licensing and accessories across all of the company’s brands, which include Dolce Vita, Brian Atwood and Blondo, as well as its flagship Steve Madden label.
 
Rodbell has over three decades of experience in the retail industry and joins Steve Madden from Hudson’s Bay Company where she most recently served as president of the group’s Lord & Taylor brand, spearheading the banner’s business transformation and pioneering a digital flagship partnership. From 2014 to 2017, Rodbell also concurrently held the role of president of the Hudson’s Bay brand. During this period, she oversaw the integration of the senior leadership teams and operations of the two retail banners.

She first joined the company in 2008 as executive vice president of merchandising for Lord & Taylor, before becoming executive vice president and chief merchant for both Lord & Taylor and Hudson’s Bay in 2012.
 
She was named among Crain’s Most Powerful Women in New York in both 2015 and 2017 and currently serves on the Boards of the Two Ten Footwear Foundation and the Parsons School of Design.
 
“Liz is a strong and inspiring leader and a highly respected merchant. Her passion for product makes her a great fit for our organization,” said Steve Madden CEO Edward Rosenfeld in a release. “I’m extremely excited to welcome Liz onto our senior leadership team, and I’m confident that her vision, experience and consumer knowledge will be invaluable assets supporting our growth initiatives.”
 
“I am very excited to join one of the most innovative and fashion forward companies in the industry,” added Rodbell. “I am energized by the strong team and have tremendous respect for both Steve, an unparalleled creative genius and entrepreneur, and Ed, a strategic thinker and dynamic leader.”
 
Steve Madden reported $395.8 million in net sales in Q2 2018, a 5.8% increase compared to the prior-year period, while net income totaled $32.4 million.