ROBERT TREIFUS NAMED SR. VP BY CALVIN KLEIN
NEW YORK — Calvin Klein said Tuesday that Robert Triefus has been appointed to the new post of senior vice president of global communications.
This confirms a report in WWD Monday.
Triefus comes to the designer company from Ketchum Public Relations, where he was senior vice president and associate director. He will start at Calvin Klein on Feb. 1.
In the post, he will oversee corporate communications, product line and retail public relations, product placement, special events, show production and internal communications.
Triefus’s appointment is another move in Klein’s attempt to build a top management team and increase the company’s global presence, a key strategy of Gabriella Forte, president and chief operating officer since September 1994.
In a statement, Forte said: “Robert brings critical experience in global brand marketing, retailing and corporate positioning. Combined with his expertise in establishing and managing worldwide communications networks, he offers exactly what we need to help ensure that Calvin Klein Inc. can fully realize our substantial potential around the world.”
Triefus said he was first pitched the Klein position by J.D. Ross International principal Don Ross, “who I’ve known for a long time.” Ross is the headhunter who has brought four top executives to Calvin Klein, including Forte.
Triefus has worked on global marketing accounts for such companies as Federal Express, Heinz USA, Dole Foods, Price Waterhouse LLP and NASDAQ. Before that, he was head of communications for the Body Shop.
Lynn Tesoro, vice president of communications, and Noona Smith Petersen, head of international communications for Calvin Klein in Europe, will report to Triefus.