Former Deckers Brands president and CEO Dave Powers has invested in men's sneaker brand Stoke Shoes and joined the New Hampshire-based company as an advisor, the brand announced Tuesday. Financial terms were not disclosed.

The move pulls Powers out of footwear retirement roughly a year after he left Deckers, where he ran the company from 2016 to 2024 and oversaw Hoka's transformation from a niche running label into a billion-dollar-plus global business.

Stoke, which targets men with wide feet, said Powers will work with its leadership team on brand strategy, product development, retail expansion, distribution and long-term growth. The company launched just one year ago and has already expanded to more than 450 retail doors nationwide, including Scheels, Murdoch's, Academy Sports + Outdoors, Rack Room Shoes and Shoe Dept.

"We're incredibly fortunate to have him as an advisor and investor," co-founder Rick Blackshaw said in a statement. "He knows footwear, he knows how to build brands, and he knows what it takes to scale a business. Having someone with Dave's experience, perspective and network in our corner gives us an incredible resource as we build the company."

What does Powers bring to the table?

Powers carries more than four decades of experience building global footwear and retail businesses. His nearly 13 years at Deckers included the Hoka scale-up — a playbook directly relevant to Stoke's comfort-and-fit positioning.

Before Deckers, he spent four years at Nike-owned Converse as vice president of global direct-to-consumer and licensed retail, held leadership roles at Timberland, and spent a decade at Gap Inc.

"I've spent my career around footwear and Stoke immediately stood out to me because the team is solving a real consumer problem," Powers said. "I know what it takes to build great footwear brands, and I believe Stoke has the product, the team and the opportunity to do something meaningful in the market."

For sourcing and wholesale executives, the hire signals where Stoke's priorities sit: Powers' mandate spans product development and distribution, suggesting the brand intends to deepen its retail footprint beyond its current 450-door base rather than lean on direct-to-consumer alone.

Who else is backing the brand?

The announcement landed one week after Stoke named actor Josh Duhamel a brand partner. Duhamel will front social content campaigns, starting with one built on the question of why so many men still wear sneakers that don't fit.

"I got tired of paying over 200 bucks for sneakers that made my feet hurt," Duhamel said in a September statement. "I'm on my feet all day and Stoke Shoes is the only shoe I wear."

The back-to-back announcements pair capital and operating expertise from a proven footwear executive with celebrity-led demand generation — a combination Stoke will likely lean on as it pushes further into national retail accounts in its second year.