Tala names new commercial director to scale growth

British activewear brand Tala, founded by influencer Grace Beverley, has appointed Rapha’s Darren Read as its new commercial director as the brand looks to scale “to the next level”.

The appointment follows the recent announcement of Tala opening its first retail store on Carnaby Street in London this spring and the 5-million-pound investment round led by Pembroke VCT in July 2024.

Read joins Tala from technical cycling clothing brand Rapha, where he served as the regional managing director. He brings with him to the activewear brand more than 15 years of experience in expanding brands into market leaders on a global scale, as he helped Rapha scale the business from 20 million pounds in turnover to its exit of 200 million pounds in 2017.

In his new role, Read will report to chief executive officer Morgan Fowles.

Commenting on the appointment, Fowles said in a statement: “Welcoming Darren as our commercial director is a true accomplishment for Tala. With the opening of our first store this spring and more exciting projects on the way, Darren will bring his expertise and passion to scaling Tala to the next level.”

Read added: “I’m thrilled to be joining Tala at such an exciting moment. My love for and experience with active brands means I’m ready to jump in and be a part of helping this amazing brand reach its full potential.”

Rapha executive Darren Read joins British activewear brand Tala

This is the latest in a series of commercial growth news from Tala, following its launch in luxury department store Selfridges across the UK last year, as well as its exclusive pop-up in the Anthropologie Gallery King’s Road, which will run until mid-May, and its launch with OUNASS in Dubai this month. Tala also named Jon Wetherell, who served as the creative director at the Net-a-Porter Group and Boden, as its new creative director in January to hone the activewear brand’s new visuals and tone of voice.

The biggest push in its growth will come next month when the brand opens its first foray into physical retail. Tala has secured a 2,000-square-foot store on Carnaby Street to offer a “tactile, immersive and experiential shopping” environment to expand its consumer reach.

On the store opening, Fowles added: “The opening of our flagship store is a celebration of Tala’s growth, and given Carnaby Street’s International footfall, a strategic move to solidify our presence both in the UK retail market and with international customers.

“Carnaby Street has long been a destination for innovative and leading brands, and this location allows us to engage directly with customers whilst complementing our strong e-commerce offering. Our customers have told us resoundingly, including via our success at Selfridges stores across the UK, that they still love shopping in physical stores.”