A Run With ...
Keith Kelly Sales Manager, New Balance
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eith Kelly was recently appointed sales manager at New Balance as the brand strengthened its commitment to the run specialty channel. The move came about as Kevin Adams, who has been leading the New Balance specialty sales team for the last 11 years, instituted a number of organization changes, including the promotion of two account managers, Melanie Chambless and Jamie Owen, into regional manager roles, and Kelly’s move into the management position.
My job is to ensure they have the freedom and support to manage their business, leading with empathy and delivering against our goals. What are your strengths? My biggest asset is my ability to navigate the challenges that the team faces and arrive at solutions that ensure they can kick ass. I also like to think I have a strong relationship with the owners and buyers in the specialty channel and I’m very comfortable having the difficult conversations when things are not going smoothly. We are all experiencing headwinds right now and I try to be a calming and positive influence for my team and for our customers.
How has the COVID-19 pandemic impacted you professionally? The pandemic has impacted New Balance no different than any other brand of our size. Its been a huge challenge but one that we have navigated with optimism and positivity. What has been your biggest challenge? Our biggest concern was our team and our customers and thankfully both seem to be doing well right now. It has been incredible to see the specialty channel persevere and come out the other side. Did any good come out of the past year? The pandemic has made everyone better at their job and in many ways our team is closer now than it was pre-pandemic. We are not out of the woods yet, and we are finding it difficult not being out in the market meeting with customers and consumers alike, but we know we will be. How about personally? I have tried to stay very positive. I got married during COVID and consider myself very lucky to live in Park City, where I have access to lots of outdoor 50
runninginsight.com
Keith Kelly with his wife, Evie.
space. I rode my bike an awful lot, getting lost in the mountain trails. But its been incredibly difficult to not see family. My parents and my brother’s family are back in Ireland and its been over two years since I’ve been home. What do you bring to your new responsibilities at this point in your career? I’ve been very fortunate to have learned from great mentors like Kevin Adams and Tom Carleo and I believe this is a natural fit given my experience and strengths. Fortunately, I have an incredible team around me. How would you describe your job responsibilities?
How would you describe New Balance’s position in the run specialty business? I wish we had more inventory and that the global supply chain disruption was suddenly fixed! It is also difficult to work from behind a computer when one of the strengths of our team is our human connection. We are all feeling that for sure. That said, we are still optimistic and we’re very proud to work with the businesses within this channel. We have outstanding product that we believe in and our future product is insanely good. Some things are out of our control, but like I tell our team, we work for a fantastic company and we have a product team that is making the best shoes and apparel in the industry. I know our retail partners are frustrated at our inventory delays, but we’re getting through it and in the second half of 2021 I hope we are back to business as usual.
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