Jeanine Farucci is Vice President of Global Brand Marketing at Cole Haan, where she leads brand strategy and marketing for the nearly 100-year-old American lifestyle brand.
Since joining Cole Haan in 2016, she has played an integral role in shaping the brand’s global positioning and bringing its heritage of craftsmanship and innovation to a new generation of consumers.
In her role, she oversees marketing initiatives spanning brand campaigns, product launches, partnerships and experiential activations across Cole Haan’s growing footwear, apparel and lifestyle categories.
Most recently, she has helped drive the brand’s continued expansion into areas including golf, travel and sport-inspired lifestyle, while maintaining Cole Haan’s focus on versatility, style and performance. Prior to Cole Haan, Farucci held marketing roles at ANN INC., Set Creative and Foot Locker.
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The consumer market is flooded with a range of companies looking to attract women golfers – what’s the approach Cole Haan plans on implementing to break through the clutter?
We’re approaching the category through a distinctly Cole Haan lens, bringing together timeless style, innovative performance and versatility. Our “course to everywhere” philosophy is the important differentiator: these are pieces designed to perform on the course while moving naturally into the rest of her day.
Building on the momentum of our men’s golf collection, women’s golf apparel is also an important step in expanding our women’s assortment and broader lifestyle offering.
We already have a community of active professionals who trust Cole Haan for its balance of performance and polish, so we’re excited to offer them even more through women’s golf apparel.
Who is your customer?
She’s a modern, active woman who values the intersection of style and function. She might be a longtime golfer or someone newer to the game, but either way, she doesn’t want clothing that’s limited to one purpose.
She expects her wardrobe to work harder and move seamlessly through her schedule.
How will the sales effort be split via approximate percentages between green grass shops, brick and mortar retail outlets and online efforts?
At this stage, we’re prioritizing our direct-to-consumer channels, complemented by a curated network of premium wholesale and green-grass partners. Because the category is still new for us, we aren’t sharing a fixed percentage breakdown.
Our focus is on learning from our customers and partners, the initial demand, and growing the business thoughtfully.
How challenging is it to mix fashion and functionality in the golf lane for women?
We actually view that as our biggest opportunity. The collection incorporates essential technical features like four-way stretch, moisture wicking, breathability, and weather resistance, without sacrificing a clean, tailored silhouette.
That balance is inherent to Cole Haan because we’ve been bridging the gap between fashion and functionality for nearly a century.
Companies routinely tout the importance of customer service. Define the term and the approach followed at Cole Haan.
For us, customer service is fundamentally about building trust at every touchpoint. That means delivering uncompromising product quality, making the shopping experience as seamless as possible across digital and physical retail, and listening to what our customers are asking for.
Particularly as we enter a new category like women’s golf apparel, nurturing that relationship with both long-time and new customers is extremely important.
How is feedback from customers handled and what role does it play in future product development?
Customer feedback is central to how we learn and evolve as a brand. We closely analyze insights from our stores, e-commerce, wholesale partners, and our broader community – whether that’s around fit, fabrication, color, or simply how women are styling the pieces throughout their day.
That feedback directly informs how we refine our current line and design future assortments.
Do professional golfer endorsements matter and will the company be pursuing them?
Professional golfers can certainly bring meaningful credibility and visibility. Authenticity is the most important box to check for potential partnerships – for both the athlete and our brand.
Amateur golfers are just as important to us in terms of partnership consideration.
The biggest growth potential demographically in women’s golf fashion lies where?
We see significant opportunity as women’s golf continues to attract a more diverse audience, including women who are newer to the game. Golf is becoming increasingly social, lifestyle-driven and connected to fashion.
That creates an opportunity to serve women who expect technical performance but do not want to compromise on personal style or everyday versatility.
If you could change one thing in golf unilaterally – what would it be and why?
If we could change one thing, it would be breaking down the old rules around who golf is for, how it’s experienced, and what the experience looks like.
The game is already evolving, and a new age approach will help introduce golf to the next generation, while preserving what longtime players love about it.
Best advice you’ve ever received –what was it and who was it from?
Someone once told me, ‘Play your own game.’ It’s simple, but it’s advice I come back to constantly – whether in my career or in life.
You’re always better when you stop measuring yourself against everyone else.
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About Cole Haan
Cole Haan is a global lifestyle brand known for blending timeless style, innovative design and all-day comfort. Founded in 1928, the brand has continually reimagined classic footwear and accessories through a modern lens, combining traditional craftsmanship with performance-driven technology to create products designed for life in motion.
Today, Cole Haan offers men’s and women’s footwear, accessories and lifestyle essentials that move seamlessly from work to weekend, grounded in the belief that looking good and feeling good should never be a trade-off.
For more info on Cole Haan go to click HERE.
M. James Ward
A long-time member of both the GWAA and MGWA. The 68-year-old has covered all facets in golf since 1980 — including reporting on over 100 major championships and 13 Ryder Cup matches. His writings have appeared in various outlets. On a personal level, has played over 2,000 courses globally and is lead reviewer for Top 100 Golf Courses.
Previously served for 17 years as national course rating panelist for Golf Digest. Has also personally competed in USGA Championships. Resides in the metro New York City area with his wife Celeste. Favorite quote paraphrased for golf — “You are what your golf score says you are.”