Vancouver-based e-commerce footwear company Shoes.com announced September 8 that Bradley Wilson is its new president.
Wilson comes to the company after serving as a general manager at Expedia, where he was in charge of the company’s Travelocity business. He had been chief marketing officer at Travelocity before that company was sold to Expedia in 2014.
He also held executive roles at Nutrisystem and Match.com.
“After a thorough and deliberate selection process, Shoes.com is delighted to welcome Bradley as we navigate through the quickly evolving and expanding landscape of ecommerce,” said Shoes.com CEO Roger Hardy.
“Bradley has an expansive understanding of the needs of our customer and will continue to look for innovative ways to serve them and our vendor community.”
Prior to hiring Wilson, Hardy functioned as both president and CEO.
Shoes.com's roots go back to Sean Clark founding a venture called Shoeme.ca, in the Dunbar area of Vancouver in 2012. It has since grown, largely by acquisition, to be a major online retailer with about $230 million in 2015 revenue.
Hardy bought Shoeme.ca in mid-2014 for an undisclosed amount while simultaneously buying Seattle’s OnlineShoes.com. In December of that year, he bought Shoes.com, which was then the online division of St. Louis-based Brown Shoe Co. (NYSE:BWS). He then merged all the brands in 2015.
The prices for those acquisitions were not disclosed but Hardy was flush with cash thanks to selling his first successful venture, Coastal Contacts, for $430 million in April 2014 to France’s Essilor.
His penchant for acquisitions also included buying socks manufacturer Richer Poorer in late 2015.
In July, Shoes.com opened a permanent brick-and-mortar store in Toronto. It is expected to open a second physical store this month on Burrard Street near Robson Street.
Hardy has floated the idea of going public but then put that initiative on hold late last year.
