Privately held RAJ Swim in Tustin hired Brenda West as its new president, making her the first person outside of the swimwear maker’s founding family to hold the position.
She served in a similar role at Manhattan Beachwear Inc. in Cypress for the past eight years.
“We’ve respected Brenda’s achievements for many years as a competitor and couldn’t be happier that she has joined Team RAJ,” said Lisa Vogel, who’s a co-owner and co-chief executive of the company, along with her brother, Alex Bhathal. The duo previously also shared the president title.
RAJ Swim makes and markets swimwear for Ella Moss, Splendid, Nautica, Reef and other brands, and also designs and produces its own label including LUXE by Lisa Vogel, NEXT, Athena, Basta Surf and VYB. The company’s revenue is estimated at around $300 million.
The hire of West came with the addition of Steven Brink as chief financial officer and chief operating officer. The move is an Orange County homecoming for Brink, who was chief financial officer at Huntington Beach-based Quiksilver Inc. from 1996 to 2007, and more recently served as CFO and COO at NYDJ Apparel LLC in Los Angeles.
Brink replaced former CFO Joseph Binotto, who in July joined Human Touch LLC in Long Beach.
—Mediha DiMartino
