Brandis Russell is VP/GM, North America, at Converse. A passionate and dedicated leader, she oversees the brand’s operations — ranging from localized marketing to marketplace management — in North America, Converse’s largest market.    

Previously, as VP, Global Footwear, Brandis worked to reconceptualize the brand’s approach to footwear strategy, creation, and execution. She drove the vision for new performance-driven platforms, such as Converse CX; recentered heritage product expressions; and championed product diversification by implementing considered growth strategies, including leading the company’s product return to its basketball legacy. 

Before joining Converse, Brandis spent 15 years leading work on some of NIKE, Inc. and Jordan Brand’s most influential products and categories. Her commitment to empowering creatives and athletes underpins her membership on the Board of Directors for Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA) as well as on the Advisory Board of FDRA + Pensole Lewis College’s Black Footwear Forum. 

Brandis received a B.A. in Economics from the University of Virginia, her home state. She now lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her son, where you’ll most likely see her sporting a pair of Comme des Garçons PLAY Chuck 70s.