Gramicci Makes New Hires

Gramicci, the outdoor-apparel company known for its tough climbing shorts and shirts, is boosting its sales staff.

The company announced it hired Christian Vogel as its new sales director for Europe and retained Tri Marketing Group of Plano, Texas, to expand sales in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Louisiana and Arkansas.

“Tri Marketing’s expertise will help our retailers better understand how to purchase the newer Gramicci product, maximizing on the rapidly growing trend of more-fashionable outdoor apparel,” Marty Weening, Gramicci’s president, said in a statement.

In addition, the Westlake Village, Calif., company hired Natalie Sichko, formerly of Perry Ellis International, to take on the job of associate designer for women’s. Sichko, a Colorado native, graduated from the University of Colorado in Boulder in 2005.

Gramicci has been trying to turn its business around ever since its original owner, Sole Survivor Corp., filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy in late 2004. —Deborah Belgum