President Obama is appointing Collective Brands Inc. chief executive officer Matthew Rubel to the advisory committee for trade policy and negotiations.
Rubel serves as chairman, president and ceo of Collective Brands Inc., the holding company for Payless ShoeSource, Collective Brands Performance + Lifestyles Group (formerly The Stride Rite Corp.) and Collective Licensing International. Brands under the former Stride Rite umbrella include Stride Rite, Keds, Sperry Top-Sider and Saucony. It was Rubel who, as president and ceo of Payless, spearheaded the acquisition of Stride Rite, which transformed the organization into a global entity.
Gov. Chris Christie (R., N.J.) was among 11 others to receive appointments to the advisory group.
“I am grateful that these highly qualified men and women have agreed to lend their talents to this administration as we work to boost our nation’s exports over the next five years,” said Obama. “When 95 percent of the world’s customers are beyond our borders, it is crucial that we compete for that business and those jobs. And we need to do so in a way that is responsible and fair, and that levels the playing field for American workers. I look forward to the wise counsel these individuals will provide on these issues as we work together in the coming months and years.”
Rubel has served as a director of Collective Brands since July 2005, and as chairman since May 2008. He was previously ceo of Cole Haan and Popular Club and executive vice president of J. Crew Group Inc. He also had a stint at Pepe Jeans USA as its ceo and had worked at Revlon as president of its specialty division. He began his career in retailing and merchandising at the now-defunct Bonwit Teller.
Rubel is also a director of Supervalu, the Eden Prairie, Minn.-based grocery chain.