Marketing and strategy executive to oversee brand management and content at leading Commerce-as-a-Service platform; will direct teams focused on driving exponential growth across 30+ brands
Veteran marketing and strategy executive Jay J. Ku has joined leading Commerce-as-a-Service (CaaS) platform Nogin as EVP and Chief Commerce Officer.
In his new role, Ku will oversee the Tustin-based company’s brand management and creative teams. These include ecommerce specialists, performance marketers, planners, buyers, retention marketers, writers, and designers focused on driving sales across 30-plus brands like Hurley, Kenneth Cole, bebe, ModCloth, and Justice. He reports to Nogin President Geoffrey Van Haeren.
“Using Nogin’s proprietary Intelligent Commerce platform, Jay’s teams deploy store optimizations and targeted marketing tactics designed to boost sales and profitability through smarter promotions, sophisticated audience segmentation, and maximized conversion rates,” said Van Haeren. “The brand team sits at the center of the wheel — coordinating all efforts between brand management and creative, as well our product, engineering, fulfillment, customer service teams, and the client. Jay is uniquely qualified to direct those efforts, which are all focused on driving exponential growth for the brands on the Nogin platform.”
Ku brings over 15 years of experience in marketing, strategy, partnerships, and business development at Los Angeles-based companies. Most recently, he spent five years as SVP, Marketing & Strategy and Society6//Leaf Group. In that capacity, he directed all brand and performance marketing efforts for the company’s Society 6 artist-driven home décor brand, which generated over $150 million in annual revenue.
Prior to that, from 2014 to 2017, Ku was SVP, Marketing & Strategy, at Participant Media, where he led strategy and campaign development at TAG, the company’s social impact agency. During that time, he worked with everything from start-ups to Fortune 50 brands to drive consumer awareness, engagement and action around important social issues.
Previously, from 2007 to 2014, Ku was Head of Partnerships and Marketing at GOOD.Is//GOOD Corps//Upworthy. In that role, he oversaw all marketing to drive revenue for GOOD Magazine, GOOD.Is, and GOOD/Corps. He began his career in 2006 as Manager, Business Development and Content Marketing at Helio, LLC, a former, mobile virtual network operator on the Sprint network. The Los Angeles resident holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from Harvard University. Ku also had a five-year career as a professional cyclist, racing for the TIAA-CREF team as well as the US National Team, He’s also a Board Member of the National Parks Conservancy.
