Vice President, Strategy, Operations & Expanding Brands Commercial
VF Corporation
Gautham Rao is Vice President of Global Commercial Operations, Strategy, and Expanding Brands at VF Corporation, where he leads global commercial strategy and operations and oversees a portfolio of growth brands, including Smartwool, icebreaker, JanSport, Eastpak, and Kipling across the Americas and EMEA.
Over the course of his career, Gautham has helped some of the world's leading consumer companies navigate growth, transformation, and changing consumer behavior. He has held leadership roles at Nike, REI, Target, Google, and VF Corporation, with experience spanning strategy, merchandising, digital commerce, retail, and general management across North America and Asia.
Passionate about the future of consumer brands and commerce, Gautham focuses on how companies can adapt to evolving consumer expectations, emerging technologies, and new retail models while staying true to the core purpose of their brands.
Tuesday Jan 12
10:45am - 11:15am
International expansion has never been more accessible and yet also more complex. Digital commerce means consumers can discover brands from anywhere in the world long before those brands have a physical presence, but awareness does not automatically translate into trust, loyalty or commercial success. This panel brings together retail leaders who have successfully expanded into international markets to discuss what it really takes to grow globally while winning locally. From entering entirely new countries as an unknown brand to adapting product ranges, marketing, customer experience and store formats for different consumer expectations, the session explores the practical realities behind international growth. Hear how brands balance global consistency with local relevance, use data and experimentation to understand new audiences, and align physical stores and digital channels to create seamless customer experiences. From choosing the right locations and merchandise mix to building awareness, creating demand and responding to cultural differences, the discussion will reveal the strategies that separate successful international expansion from costly mistakes.
