Madison Reed taps Athleta vet as chief marketing officer

Dive Brief:

Hair color brand Madison Reed on Thursday announced Sheila Shekar Pollak was hired as chief marketing officer. She reports to the brand’s founder and CEO Amy Errett.
Shekar Pollak previously held marketing leadership roles at Gap Inc.-owned Athleta, outdoor apparel brand Orvis and skin care brand Biossance. She succeeds Brad Lande-Shannon, who operated in a dual-role of chief people officer and chief marketing officer. Lande-Shannon will retain his role as chief people officer, according to a company press release.
Shekar Pollak spent over nine years at Athleta, according to her LinkedIn profile. She was an integral part of Athleta’s “Power of She” brand platform and helped launch the Athleta Girl clothing line.

Dive Insight:

As Madison Reed’s new marketing chief, Shekar Pollak will oversee marketing and creative elements seeking to “focus on inspiring women to demand more, in their hair color and their lives, through the brand’s revolutionary hair color offerings,” per the company release.

As part of this, Shekar Pollak will help develop campaigns like Team ColorWonder, which centers on women in sports, according to Errett. 

Madison Reed has sought to expand the company’s culture with female sports celebrity endorsements. In August, Madison Reed signed name, image and likeness deals with four University of Connecticut women’s basketball players, including Paige Bueckers, to promote its ColorWonder hair color product.

Shekar Pollak sees her mission at Madison Reed as an extension of what she was able to achieve at both Athleta and Orvis.

“I am honored to join Madison Reed, a female-founded, industry disrupting brand that is dedicated to inspiring women to unapologetically live their truth and feel unstoppable, confident and beautiful,” Shekar Pollak said in a statement. “From launching ‘The Power of She’ brand platform at Athleta to Athleta Girl to inspire the next generation of girls to be confident, my most cherished career highlights have been rooted in building a passionate community that uplifts women and girls.”

Madison Reed has made other executive changes in recent years. In 2023, it hired a chief revenue officer to lead its hair color bar business and e-commerce revenue operations, while also building new revenue streams.