Erem Names Jax Mariash Mustafa Vice President of Marketing

November 30, 2021

First desert outdoor brand taps accomplished marketer and ultra runner known as “Queen of the Desert”

HENDERSON, Nev. – Nov. 30, 2021 /OUTDOOR SPORTSWIRE/ – Today, Erem announced the appointment of Jax Mariash Mustafa as its Vice President of Marketing. Co-founded and led by a fourth-generation bootmaker from the family that started Timberland, Erem is the first outdoor brand designed from the ground up for desert performance. The company is building superior Biocircular™ men’s hiking boots and women’s hiking boots using only materials and constructions with 100% proven paths back to nature. Mustafa joined the Erem team the same week it made its commercial launch.

“Jax is a proven business leader and one of the all-time greatest desert athletes,” said co-founder and CEO Noah Swartz.  “Her addition to the Erem team is an important step towards our goal of delivering truly world class, outdoor performance gear for the desert, while also raising the sustainability bar. She has the marketing experience to increase awareness both for our brand and our mission.”

Mustafa brings more than 16 years of experience in marketing, branding, and communications. Over the course of her fast-paced career, she has identified and taken new business opportunities to market, defined and implemented robust strategic plans, and established long-term customer relationships.

She began her career in grassroots marketing, retail marketing, store design, and merchandising at lucy and Crocs, then led the brand overhaul during her three years at Native^® Eyewear as marketing director. From there, she took off to work for Powderbird Helicopter Skiing as part of the launch of her boutique marketing agency MARiASH MARKETiNG. Always ready for a new challenge, Mustafa founded Stoked Roasters^®, a craft coffee roasting company in Hood River, Oregon, focused on the outdoor enthusiast while continuing to lead her marketing agency. After five years, and reaching $1.5 million in sales, Mustafa sold Stoked Roasters^®. She took a well-deserved work sabbatical and joined Erem in November 2021.  

During and between these career stops, Mustafa was literally running around the world as a professional ultra runner. She is known as the “Queen of the Desert” and one of the top ranked and most decorated females in self-supported stage racing in the world. She is the 2016 4 Deserts Female World Champion and made history as the first woman to complete the 4 Deserts Grand Slam Plus, a series of races that makes up an ultra, ultra, ultra marathon throughout the world’s toughest terrains in Namibia, China, Chile, and Antarctica. Plus, she raised more than $18,000 for the LymeLight Foundation while training and competing in these races. In 2012, she completed a 365-day running streak to raise funds for cancer research and to inspire the masses to get outside.

“I am honored to launch back into my career with Erem. The brand resonates deep in my core and mirrors my passion for the desert,” said Mustafa. “I am thrilled to utilize my marketing and branding expertise to establish Erem as the official go-to brand for desert adventurers.  About 30% of the globe is covered in desert terrain. I look forward to helping the brand to expand to offer products to equip desert explorers from head to toe. Our products will allow the adventurers to enjoy their time in the desert with ease, durability, and comfort, all while knowing they are supporting a brand that has climate change and sustainability in mind with every product made.”

She added, “Erem joins the outdoor industry with an extensive legacy in the footwear segment, and a team full of desert enthusiasts. I’m proud to be a part of a company that is shaking up the industry by putting sustainability at the forefront from day one.”

ABOUT EREM

Founded in 2021 by a father-and-son team of environmental footwear innovators, Erem is the first outdoor brand focused on desert performance. Launching with Biocircular™ desert hiking boots, Erem’s Xerocole collection uses only materials with 100% proven paths back to nature; the company also incentivizes customers to return products to be repaired or restreamed into new uses. Erem believes that performance gear made for enjoying the planet should not harm the planet, and so is on a mission to raise the sustainability standard for outdoor products. The name “Erem,” pronounced Eh-rem, is an acronym adapted from the ancient Greek word for desert that stands for Exceptional, Responsible, Enduring, and Motivated. This is the company’s product promise and brand philosophy. To learn more, visit eremlife.com.