The Talent Studios Fills Top Marketing Position for United Sports Brands

January 31, 2025 – The Talent Studios has placed Kyle Schlegel as senior vice president of marketing of United Sports Brands in Fountain Valley, CA. Jeremy Cohen and Serena Smith led the assignment. “We are thrilled to bring Kyle on to lead the United Sports Brands marketing organization,” said Phil Gyori, CEO of United Sports Brands. “He brings an incredible passion for sports, team-building, and extensive leadership experience that will play a huge role in growing the United Sports Brands portfolio in the coming years.”
Mr. Schlegel most recently served as the VP of marketing & DTC of Weber, LLC, and has also held senior marketing leadership roles at top sports and consumer brands such as Wilson Sporting Goods, Hillerich & Bradsby (Louisville Slugger), and Procter & Gamble. He has over 25 years of executive and management experience, and a track record of helping to transform brands and marketing teams. Under his leadership at Weber, the company saw tremendous growth in marketing capability and impact, solidifying the brand’s #1 position and expanding into new categories and marketing channels.
In his prior roles at Wilson and Louisville Slugger, Mr. Schlegel helped the brands modernize their marketing efforts, expand their audiences, and reinvigorate their brand identity. Mr. Schlegel spent his first 13 years at Procter & Gamble in market research and brand management. He has worked both domestically and internationally on widely recognized and highly marketed brands.
“I am an athlete and sports enthusiast to my core, and it is an honor to be able to lead marketing for such an incredible portfolio of category-defining brands,” said Mr. Schlegel. “I feel fortunate to be able to partner with the exceptional team here and look forward to helping build reach and relevance while delivering the protection and enhanced performance that athletes expect from United Sports Brands and its brands.”
Owned by Norwest Equity Partners (NEP), based in Minneapolis, MN, United Sports Brands is a global leader in sports performance and protective products. NEP seeks to invest in growing and profitable middle-market companies primarily across the business services, consumer products and services, and industrial growth sectors.
Proven Search Firm
The Talent Studios is a business-to-consumer focused retained executive search firm, working across consumer technology, digital commerce, four-wall commerce & service businesses, iconic brands, entertainment, media & content and consumer services. Its vertical focus includes: fashion & apparel, food & beverage, beauty & personal care, lifestyle brands, action sports, fitness/wellness, creator economy, media & content, digital and physical consumer services (healthcare, FinTech, education, two-sided marketplaces).
The firm’s clients include: Apollo Global Management, Advent International, Andreessen Horowitz, Bain Capital, L Catterton, Red Bull, Mattel, Disney, Burton Snowboards, Restoration Hardware, Pure Barre, TOMS Shoes, Boardriders, Aston Martin, Fanatics, Health-Ade Kombucha, SmartyPants Vitamins, Lulus.com, Edmunds.com, Philz Coffee, and Public Goods. Representative investor partners include Apollo Global Management, Advent International, Andreessen Horowitz, Bain Capital, L Catterton, Institutional Venture Partners, Summit Partners, HIG Growth, Searchlight Capital, Norwest Equity Partners, and North Castle Partners.
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Mr. Cohen co-founded The Talent Studios in 2011 following early search experience at global executive search firm DHR Global, where he served as a principal in the firm’s retail/consumer and private equity practices. He has led pivotal leadership searches that have propelled privately held clients through growth to exit, as well as large scale transformation and performance enhancement at large public companies and brands. In addition to search, Mr. Cohen assists clients with performance management and assessment strategy.
The Talent Studios Recruits CEO for The Princeton Review
The Talent Studios has placed Robert Batten as the chief executive officer of The Princeton Review in New York. Jeremy Cohen and Serena Smith led the search assignment. Dr. Batten now also heads The Princeton Review’s affiliate company, Tutor.com, which helps institutions and organizations deliver 24/7, on-demand, personalized homework help at scale. “We are thrilled to have Bob leading our organization,” said Sadeepa Wijesekara, chief technology officer. “Given his track record of accelerating learner-focused product development, he could not have arrived at a better time to drive advances in our award-winning AI offerings and other trailblazing educational tools.”
Kelli Telling is co-founder and managing partner at The Talent Studios. She began her career in General Electric’s emerging leaders’ program and was a business unit operator at GE Lighting. Ms. Telling went on to lead technology product development at several venture-backed companies in Silicon Valley. Thereafter, she moved into successive management roles at Deloitte Consulting. Ms. Telling has substantial experience conducting leadership searches in finance, technology and marketing, and is a talent contributor to the Transworld Business publication.
Ms. Smith is entering her third year at The Talent Studios, where she support search execution on senior leadership searches. She joined The Talent Studios following graduation from Bucknell University.
Related: The Talent Studios Recruits Chief Marketing Officer for Summit Golf Brands
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief and Dale M. Zupsansky, Executive Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media