Thomas Burkhardt is a recognized operational and thought leader in strategy, global marketing & brand management and organizational effectiveness. Throughout his international career, he has been tasked with leading some of the world’s biggest and aspirational beauty and accessories brands for Procter & Gamble, Coty Inc. and Marchon Eyewear.
Born and raised in Germany and having served in the German Air Force, Thomas graduated from the University of Cologne with an MBA, majoring in product management, purchasing and organizational theory. Curious to understand international perspectives, his work experience during his studies took him to Austria, Italy and the United States with companies like Henkel, Barilla, The Readers’ Digest and Colgate Palmolive.
After graduating, Thomas spent 13 years with Procter & Gamble in Germany, the UK and Switzerland. Working on brands like Pantene Pro-V, Herbal Essences and Vidal Sassoon he successively gained increased international responsibility with regional and global roles. Eventually he was appointed global brand leader for the HUGO BOSS fragrance and male skin care franchise. Besides leading his business, Thomas was also an active contributor to P&G’s Marketing Centers of Excellence, supporting companywide efforts in Initiative Management, Commercial Innovation and Branded Entertainment.
In 2010, Thomas joined Coty Inc. in New York City as the global brand leader for Calvin Klein Fragrances & Color Cosmetics – one of the world’s largest prestige fragrance franchises. In addition to growing and re-establishing the brand building fundamentals for Calvin Klein, Thomas quickly established himself as a thought leader within Coty who pioneered new approaches in digital, social media, talent and creative development.
From 2016 to 2022, Thomas served as the Senior Vice President for Global Brand Licensing, Marketing and Product Design for Marchon Eyewear, a division of VSP Vision. After 6 years in this role, Thomas is now the President of Marchon Eyewear, Inc., leading the company worldwide. Marchon Eyewear is one of the globally leading designers, manufacturer, and distributors of premium optical eyewear and sunglasses, and works with some of the world’s best-known performance, fashion, and lifestyle companies such as NIKE, Columbia, Converse, Calvin Klein, Cole Haan, Karl Lagerfeld, Lacoste, Lanvin, Longchamp, Salvatore Ferragamo, and Victoria Beckham, in addition to their own portfolio of brands like Dragon and Flexon.
Under Thomas’ leadership, Marchon established one of the leading sustainability and CSR programs in the eyewear industry, Eyes on Tomorrow, setting Marchon on the path to become an innovator and leader in the development and use of sustainable materials and production methods.
In addition to his day job, Thomas sits on the Board of Directors for the Accessories Council and is a member if the Association of National Advertiser’s CMO Masters Circle.
Conferences
The Health+Wealth of Our Planet
The Business of Fighting Climate Change Presented by Techonomy and Worth The health and economy of our planet is at a tipping point – today’s situation is profoundly unsustainable. For all our sakes, and for the sake of their own long-term survival, businesses must evolve rapidly. A prosperous future depends on it. This one-day event […]
