Kathmandu and Rip Curl parent KMD Brands has appointed Ian Morrice as an independent non-executive director to its board.
Morrice will take up his post from August 20, 2026, and will hold the post until the company’s annual shareholders meeting later this year, likely around November.
Morrice brings more than 30 years of senior leadership, business transformation and strategic advisory experience across the retail, consumer and wholesale sectors in New Zealand, Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom.
He has a strong record managing large publicly listed businesses, including the group CEO of Metcash Limited and the CEO of The Warehouse Group in New Zealand.
“Ian has an outstanding track record leading and transforming major retail and consumer businesses across New Zealand and Australia,” KMD chair Philip Bowman said. “His deep operational and strategic expertise, together with his extensive governance experience and strong focus on shareholder value creation, will further strengthen the Board as we continue to execute our Next Level strategy and evaluate other opportunities to accelerate value generation for shareholders."
Morrice joins KMD as the company continues to rightsize amid a challenging consumer market and economy. Earlier this year, the company faced calls to demerge its Rip Curl brand – which it quickly rejected. The retail group also managed to complete an NZ$208 million debt refinance.
This comes as the group's performance appears to be tracking better through FY26, with sales at Rip Curl and Kathmandu up by 4 per cent and 12 per cent, respectively, in the third quarter. KMD also manages Oboz, a much smaller subsidiary that is heavily in the wholesale space, with sales there down 8.9 per cent.
Group sales were up 5.2 per cent in the third quarter and up 6.6 per cent in the nine months between August 2025 and April 2026.
The group's gross margin also grew by around 258 basis points to 58.2 per cent in Q3 FY26, with lifts here across all three brands.
Morrice said KMD owns a portfolio of highly regarded outdoor and lifestyle brands with significant potential.
“Throughout my career I have worked with retail and consumer businesses to improve performance, strengthen customer relevance and deliver sustainable growth,” Morrice said. “I look forward to contributing that experience as the Group delivers its Next Level strategy and develops opportunities to create long-term value for shareholders."
As required by the group’s constitution and the NZX Listing Rules, Morrice will hold office until the KMD Brands annual shareholders’ meeting following the effective date of his appointment, at which time he will resign and stand for election.
Morrice’s appointment comes after the apparel and lifestyle group initiated a board renewal process earlier this year.
Currently, the board consists of Bowman, alongside non-executive directors Andrea Martens, Abby Foote and John Strowger, as well as group CEO and MD Brent Scrimshaw.