On October 15, Kenneth Cole announced Jed Berger as CEO and president, marking a move away from the company’s historically design-driven leadership toward a marketing-led approach centered on storytelling, consumer connection and purpose.
The company, which distributes in 24 countries through department and specialty retailers, plans to selectively reintroduce branded retail experiences. Most of its standalone stores were closed in the mid-2010s as Kenneth Cole shifted to a wholesale-first model, but it has an upcoming series of two to three “retail labs” in Europe as it cautiously returns to physical retail. The “lab” format refers to small, test-focused concept spaces designed to experiment with assortments, layouts and localized storytelling before potential scaling-up to permanent stores.
Berger’s promotion caps his three years with the company, during which he has led its return to growth and helped expand its women’s category. Now, his mandate is to evolve that progress into something bigger. “We’re not a label, we’re a brand,” he said in an interview. “Innovation and social impact aren’t what we do, they’re who we are.” The comment reflects the brand’s effort to modernize its longstanding mix of functionality and meaning, updating Kenneth Cole’s legacy of purpose for today’s consumer.
The brand operates under a royalty-based licensing model that spans categories from footwear and handbags to tailoring and accessories, with around 150 employees globally. Long-term partners include Marc Fisher for footwear, Concept One for handbags and Peerless for suiting, allowing the brand to stay agile while maintaining creative oversight through Berger and founder Kenneth Cole.
The company’s founder, Cole, will remain executive chairman and chief creative officer of both the brand and the Mental Health Coalition, the organization he established in 2019 to address stigma around mental health. In a statement, Cole said the new structure “honors our roots while empowering this new team to evolve the brand and the business in bold, meaningful ways.”
Alongside Berger, the leadership lineup includes a mix of internal promotions and existing executives, with Emily Cole elevated to chief product officer and creative director, Lauren Montemaro Kahn joining as chief commercial officer, Samantha Cohen continuing as chief marketing and social impact officer, Renada Williams expanding her remit as chief people officer and general counsel, and David Edelman remaining chief financial officer.
Kenneth Cole currently sells through department stores including Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s, as well as its own e-commerce site, with prices ranging from around $100 for footwear to $500 for tailored outerwear.
Women’s apparel, relaunched last year after more than a decade, is now a key growth driver. Berger said the collection was built slowly and deliberately to ensure longevity. In its first full year on the market, the category outpaced footwear for the first time since 2018.
Meanwhile, the company’s 16-year-old comfort-driven footwear label Gentle Souls by Kenneth Cole remains a consistent performer, especially through Nordstrom and Zappos. “We launched small, stayed premium and really understood who we were building for,” Berger said. The next stage includes expanding into handbags and broadening the Gentle Souls footwear line over the next year, while maintaining what Berger calls “phased discipline” around scale and distribution.
Digital channels now account for an estimated 35% of the brand’s total sales, up from around 20% before the pandemic.
That measured growth extends to partnerships. The company recently partnered with Marc Fisher on men’s footwear, a collaboration Berger described as “two old shoe dogs sketching on the floor together.” For a licensing-based brand, that level of creative involvement is unusual. Berger said Kenneth Cole’s approach is to treat partners as extensions of the brand, rather than as licensees. “There’s not another company in the world built like us,” he said. “We’re incredibly hands-on [with our licensing partners and the launches] because that’s how we protect quality and consistency.”
International expansion is another focus. Kenneth Cole Productions plans to open a showroom in Düsseldorf in the coming weeks, using it as a base for growth in Europe, followed by the Middle East and Asia. “Europe sets the tone for assortment and experience globally,” Berger said. “It’s about creating environments that represent the modern professional, not chasing store counts.”
Online, the company has also rebuilt its strategy to prioritize storytelling around purpose, product innovation, impact and consistency across platforms. The brand’s digital content now highlights the functionality of its products — from stretch suiting to lightweight outerwear — alongside the company’s ongoing advocacy for mental health and social causes. “E-commerce has become less of a sales tool and more of a branding tool,” Berger said.
Purpose remains central to the company’s identity. Proceeds continue to support the Mental Health Coalition, which operates out of the brand’s headquarters, and the idea of “Always on Purpose” guides how the team develops both product and messaging. According to the company, a portion of proceeds from every major collection — typically 1-5%, depending on the product or campaign — goes to support the Mental Health Coalition. The Mental Health Coalition now counts more than 250 partner organizations and campaigns that have reached hundreds of millions of people globally, according to the brand.
“What we stand for is more important than what we stand in,” Berger said. “It’s about making people feel good mentally, physically and emotionally in what they wear.”
That focus extends to the brand’s investment in technical innovation, which will deepen this year, including lightweight fabrics, stretch-infused tailoring and temperature-controlled suiting aimed at making professional wear feel more functional.
“I came in as a growth driver who understood brand, structure and prioritization,” Berger said. “Now it’s about translating that into sustainable, purpose-led growth.”
For Kenneth Cole Productions, the next chapter will rely on the same qualities that built the brand’s reputation four decades ago. “We’re not chasing nostalgia,” Berger said. “We’re building on a foundation that’s already there: innovation, purpose and making people’s lives better.”
