PAKA Expands Senior Leadership to Fuel Brand Growth and Innovation

October 7, 2024

The Peru-based brand brings leaders from across Smartwool, prAna, and Pact on board to lead sales, e-commerce, operations, marketing, and design teams

Boulder, CO (Monday, Oct 7) /OUTDOOR SPORTSWIRE/ – PAKA, the sustainable apparel brand best known for its performance-based alpaca fiber gear, announces the addition of four new senior hires and one internal promotion, including Christian Castellani as Director of Wholesale Sales, Matt Etzler as Senior Director of E-Commerce, Erika Marsh as Senior Director of Supply Chain and Operations, and Megan Krajco as Design Director, and Paris Karstedt as Director of Brand and Marketing. These hires come as the brand sees continual growth, recently opening its first physical store and celebrating seven years in business.

“I’m honored to show up and work with our team every day.” Kris Cody, CEO and Founder of PAKA, says. “PAKA’s culture is thriving more than ever – trust, clarity, and integrity go hand in hand with bringing in this new set of experienced leaders to steer our brand’s future. It’s an exciting time, and I’m proud to see PAKA growing up the way it was meant to.”

Castellani joins PAKA as the Director of Wholesale Sales after 10 years with prAna as North American Sales Director and time with Native Shoes as VP of Sales. As PAKA branches into wholesale as part of its continued growth, Castellani will lead the brand’s efforts to build strong retail partnerships that align with PAKA. “I’m excited to be a member of the Paka team and to introduce consumers to our brand through great retail partners,” Castellani said.

PAKA brings Etzler on as Senior Director of E-Commerce as the brand seeks to strategically amplify its digital presence. Etzler joins PAKA with 14 years of experience in the e-commerce and digital marketing space, previously working with Sports Authority and VF Corp, the parent company of Smartwool & icebreaker, as well as Einstein Bros Bagel and Caribou Coffee.

Marsh steps into the role of PAKA’s Senior Director of Supply Chain and Operations after 10 years of experience in consumer goods manufacturing with prAna. Marsh specializes in product and supply chain strategy and joins PAKA to streamline operational processes and enhance supply chain performance.

Krajco, PAKA’s incoming Design Director, joins the team with a mission to craft products that meet consumer needs and reflect a deep commitment to sustainability and design. Following 3 years as Design Director at Pact, Krajco brings a unique perspective to the PAKA design team, prioritizing meaningful storytelling and products crafted with a purpose.

Karstedt steps into the role of Director of Brand and Marketing at PAKA after serving as the brand’s Head of Communications for the past three years, having taken the brand from its infancy to a well-defined competitor in the natural fiber space. Karstedt’s role as Director of Brand and Marketing will involve planning, developing, and executing fully integrated, multi-channel marketing strategies to support the PAKA product, brand, and marketplaces.

Reach out with any questions to Maddie Jarrard at maddie@purpleorangepr.com.

About PAKA:

Paka® is the leading innovator of alpaca fiber apparel. Founded in 2017, Paka started as a vision to bring the revolutionary alpaca fiber to the outdoor industry. Paka is a Certified B Corp, and secured the Best for the World™ award in 2022. The brand employs 200+ Quechua weavers at 4x the living wage in Peru, makes upwards of 90% of products locally, and donates 1% of its revenue to Peruvian Hearts, an NGO dedicated to the education and empowerment of young women in Peru. Learn more at www.paka.com Instagram: @paka

Media Contact: Maddie Jarrard

Purple Orange PR

615.686.3198

maddie@purpleorangepr.com