James ‘JC’ Curleigh is a proven global leader and a successful 3-time CEO who has earned a strong reputation over the past 25
years as a visionary brand builder, a strong business driver, and a compelling cultural architect. JC prides himself on balancing
his professional experience with his passionate approach, as he perseveres through his exciting challenges, both professionally
and personally. Based on his extraordinary track-record, he is often referred to as a ‘Level 5 Leader’ and a ‘Change Agent’.
He got his professional start at Mars, Inc. where he helped lead the global branding of Snickers with a creative idea to sponsor
the Olympics, resulting in Snickers becoming a $1B brand. He then went on to work for Salomon Sports and TaylorMade
adidas Golf as a Managing Director in Europe, eventually helping to lead a merger between Salomon and adidas to become the
President and CEO of Salomon North America and a member of the Salomon Board. At Salomon, JC helped lead the
pivotal brand positioning from simply being a ‘ski’ company to becoming a successful ‘mountain sports’ company.

After Salomon, he joined KEEN Footwear as the formative President and CEO, reporting to the founder, to drive exponential
growth through category innovation, commercial solutions, and cultural connections. After 5 years leading KEEN, JC was
persuaded to join Levi Strauss & Co as the new Brand President to ‘captain’ the Levi brand’s much needed ‘turn-around’. In
less than 7 years, the successful turn-around restored Levi’s to both a cultural and a commercial leader again, not to mention
the bold addition of Levi’s Stadium. JC is widely recognized as one of the key leaders of the modern-day Levi’s
resurgence.

In 2018, he made an ‘instrumental’ decision to join Gibson Guitars which was going through a tumultuous bankruptcy. Backed
by private equity (KKR), JC joined Gibson Brands as the President & CEO, a member of the Board, and as an investor. With
the right balance of turn-around experience, combined with a bias towards action, JC set the conditions for success at Gibson
Brands. He is strategically minded, financially focused, and execution driven. In less than 5 years, the brand has been restored
back to its’ iconic status, the business has been successfully modernized, and the future looks bright for Gibson. As part
of a broader ‘master’ plan, the initial investor has taken over as the CEO and the company is set up for continued success.
With the Gibson mission complete, JC took on a new challenge in 2023 as the new CEO of Pelican Products, a Platinum private
equity backed company. Pelican is an iconic brand known for its’ legendary ‘Built to Protect’ cases used in mission critical
situations. The focus will be on re-inforcing, re-energizing, and re-imagining Pelican into the future . . . watch this space.
Along JC’s journey, he has been asked by several people, companies, and communities to provide some relevant experience
and meaningful thought partnership. As a result, he set up JCi3 (insight – inspiration – impact) to provide advisory services,
leadership coaching / mentoring, and meaningful keynote speeches. JCi3 is an LLC founded in 2007.

With regards to education, JC is a ‘life-long’ learner. He received his undergraduate degree in business from St. Mary’s
University in Canada, where he also recently received his Honorary Doctorate in Business & Entrepreneurship. In 2007, JC
attended both Stanford School of Business and Harvard Business School for extended Executive Education sessions.
Throughout his career, JC has served on several Boards (both for-profit and non-profit) and has been a guest lecturer at
several Universities (Vanderbilt, Chapman, St. Mary’s). He has given several compelling keynote speeches, including two
TEDx Talks, SxSW, CES, The National Retail Federation, The Ivy Social University, and the Leaders in Sport Business Summit.
According to audiences around the world, ‘JC has a unique way to provide insight, inspiration, and impact with his message
and style’.
Despite being a ‘down-to-earth’ leader with a humble and hard-working approach, JC has received several accolades
and awards for his leadership impact across businesses, communities, and causes. He won the coveted ‘Disruptive Innovator’
Award at the Tribeca Festival, was named one of Portland’s ‘Most Influential’ Leaders by the PBJ and one of Nashville’s ‘Power
Players’ by the NBJ.
On the personal side, JC is a triple citizen of the U.S.A., Canada, and the UK. His father was a General in the Military, his
mother is a Community Leader, and he has an identical twin brother. He loves adventure travel, music, cars, cooking, human
powered sports, and, most importantly, his family (wife Jackie and 3 kids – son 21 and twin daughters 18).
One of JC’s favorite songs is ‘The Times They Are A-Changin’, by Bob Dylan, for its’ timeless relevancy and cultural
sentiment!