Apple Bolsters Online Retail Team With Former Delta VP

Apple is beefing up its online retail team with the addition of former Delta Air Lines Vice President of Marketing Bob Kupbens, reports AdAge. According to his LinkedIn profile, Kupbens is now serving as Apple's Vice President of Online Retail after leaving Delta earlier this month.

Kupbens originally jointed Delta in 2010 and before that, he spent eight years transitioning through several roles at Target, last serving as a vice president. During a 2013 AdAge conference, Kupbens spoke on the importance of "love brands" noting that every consumer has five brands “they really love.”

"I used to work at Target and when you went to a cocktail party and you told people that you worked at Target, you know what they'd say?" he asked. "'I love Target! I'll give you a big hug!' You know what people say when you tell them at a cocktail party that you work at Delta? 'I hate you! You lost my bag! You had me on the tarmac for seven hours. I'm going to kill you!' It's different when you work for a love brand.”

Like Target, Apple is undoubtedly a "love brand" for millions of people, inspiring its fans to wait in line for hours and even days for new products. Many companies even parody consumer dedication to the brand, with Samsung, for example, mocking Apple fans in an array of anti-iPhone commercials.

Bob Kupbens will presumably work under Angela Ahrendts, who will begin her role a Senior Vice President at Apple in the coming months, leading both the company's retail and online teams. Ahrendts, who is currently transitioning out of her role as Burberry's CEO, will report directly to Apple CEO Tim Cook.

With the addition of Kupbens and Ahrendts, Apple will finally have strong leadership for its retail division. The company has been without a leader since John Browett was fired in October of 2012 during a significant management restructuring.