How The North Face, Vans and Timberland are trying to transform their businesses in 2026

This story was first published by Digiday sibling Modern Retail.

Apparel and outdoors giant VF Corp is revealing more details of its growth playbooks for three of its core brands: The North Face, Vans and Timberland.

The company, which recently reported a 2% rise in revenue for its second fiscal quarter, knows it’s at a crossroads as 2026 gets underway. Two of its brands — The North Face and Timberland — have managed to hold onto gains. Meanwhile, Vans — once VF Corp’s top-performing brand — has struggled with muted demand. This last quarter, Vans reported a 9% drop in year-over-year revenue — progress over other quarters, but still not where the company would like to be. Meanwhile, VF Corp just sold Dickies for $600 million, a decision it hopes will help drive shareholder returns.

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The case for and against influencer-led Super Bowl ads

While creators have established themselves as essential marketing assets, A-list celebrities continue to dominate Super Bowl ads. At $8 million for a 30-second Super Bowl spot, celebrities are expected to maintain their monopoly on Big Game commercials this year, keeping influencers and creators in the wing for social and experiential campaigns.

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“It’s just viewership demographics. You cast a really wide net of people watching it, and you want as many people as possible to recognize the person you’re putting on the screen,” said Jerry Hoak, chief creative officer at The Martin Agency. (Ritz, a client of The Martin Agency, will air a 30-second commercial during the third quarter of this year’s Super Bowl. The agency declined to share further details about the spot.)

Brands like Bud Light and Raisin Bran will feature celebrities in their Super Bowl ads this year.

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