H4X, an esports apparel brand, has appointed Cole Gurman, the son of founder Jon Gurman, as their new CEO.
Jon will stay on with the company as chairman with a focus on strategic licensing partnerships and retail intiatives.
Regarding Cole, the newly appointed CEO will bring a financial background and “millennial mindset” to the apparel brand, with an emphasis on improving player performance.
“As a young rapper and musician I was very into fashion and my father [Jon Gurman] being who he is, I was pretty much de facto merchandiser at a young age,” Cole Gurman said.
“Esports is a young space,” said Gurman. “I think it’s to your advantage, having a millennial mindset behind you, especially if you’re trying to build a brand that derives inspiration from gaming and pop culture. I believe that played a critical role as to why [I was chosen for CEO]. There were many moving variables that attributed to my new role, and the synergy between my eye for fashion and field of study certainly carried weight…”
Cole Gurman is aiming to expand the company’s offerings while also strengthening its mission statement of improving player performance, and elaborated on that goal in his statement.
“Securing key collabs and finding synergies with different brands that are specialized and focused in their field will allow us to broaden our product mix,” he said. “For example, sneakers, backpacks, or headwear – products that align with our brand from both a performance and aesthetic standpoint. You can also expect us to activate co-branded entertainment, music, and character collaborations as well as integrated technology.”
Cole also spoke about his father’s impact on the industry, as well as his new role moving forward.
“My father’s pedigree in the apparel industry is absolute, and as chairman, he has a critical role to play. With his 40 years of supply chain management experience and key relationships with top quality manufacturers worldwide, he enables Moniker to achieve healthy margins for our omni-channel distribution.“
“Procuring key partnerships and heading up our retail initiatives comes to natural to him. All of this to say, having him focus on what he does best will continue to put the company in a fortuitous position. Overall, I’m lucky to have a strong team behind me, including strategic partners like Bitkraft and all of its portfolio companies and management team, notably, Jens Hilgers.”