Mizuno has announced the addition of industry veteran Mark Sheehan to the Mizuno family. Mark will serve as Vice President – Product Management, Running Division, starting January 5, 2015. He will lead the Mizuno Running division R&D innovation and product teams based in Atlanta, Ga. and at the Mizuno Design Center in Portland, Ore.
“I am thrilled to be part of the Mizuno brand that has a very aspirational purpose to impact the world through the transformative power of sports. Through its superior products and highly emotional brand message, Mizuno has built incredible loyalty and evangelism among runners. I look forward to working with the team to deliver that brand experience to even more runners,” commented Mark.
Mark joins Mizuno with 28 years of experience in the running business, starting his career as a co-owner of a Running Specialty store in 1986. After his retail experience, Mark moved to product management and held progressively increasing responsibilities at Nike, Puma, Reebok and K-Swiss. Most recently, Sheehan was President of his own firm, Material Concept Group.
An accomplished runner himself, Mark qualified for the U.S. Olympic trials and worked as a track and cross country coach at the University of South Florida.
“Mark has both the experience and passion we need in this critical role,” said Bob Puccini, President of Mizuno USA and Director of Mizuno Corporation. “His addition to our team further supports our commitment to deliver continuous innovation to fuel our aggressive and achievable growth objectives in the running category.”