TALA welcomes new Commercial Director as it continues expansion

Activewear brand TALA has appointed Darren Read, previously Regional Managing Director of cycling brand Rapha, as Commercial Director.

Read spent 11 and a half years at Rapha, moving up the ranks from starting as Retail Communications Manager in 2013. He was instrumental in scaling the Rapha business from a £20 million turnover to £200 million.

Prior to Raph, Read was Regional Training Manager at House of Fraser from May 2012 to November 2013, and before that spent over four years at Apple where he honed his expertise in opening stores across the world.

The news is the latest of a series of big commercial moves for TALA, including the recent announcement of its first retail store, a 2,000 sq ft flagship on London’s Carnaby Street, opening this spring. It also succeeded with a £5 million investment round led by Pembroke VCT in July 2024.

In his new role at TALA, Read will report directly into CEO Morgan Fowles, who said: "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.”

A "digitally and socially native brand" founded in 2019 by entrepreneur, podcaster and public speaker Grace Beverley, TALA successfully launched in Selfridges stores across the UK in early 2024.

Last week, it also launched a four week pop-up at Anthropologie's King’s Road Gallery – set to run until 8 May – as well as a pop-up with OUNASS in Dubai as it sets out to expand its physical store presence.

The new Carnaby Street store will allow customers to explore its bestselling collections, from its innovative new Airform collection to its DayFlex and 365 collections.