New Delhi: Hagerty announced the addition of a new executive to its growing digital leadership team, with Dan Beranek being named Senior Vice President of Product Management. Beranek’s hiring is one of several recent strategic appointments as the company continues its growth as a leading automotive lifestyle brand. Beranek will be responsible for leading the digital product development practice and will be reporting to Kelly Smith, Chief Strategy Officer, the company said in a release.
Beranek joins Hagerty after four years as vice president of digital product and experience at sweetgreen, a digital-first, fast-casual restaurant brand. During his time at sweetgreen, Beranek defined the digital platform and go-to-market strategy and was successful in helping the brand secure USD 250 million in capital investment that drove its valuation to over USD 1 billion with fewer than 100 US stores.
Prior to sweetgreen, Beranek held key digital leadership roles at Starbucks. Reporting to the chief digital officer, Beranek served as director of digital ordering and GM of the mobile order & pay initiative, taking the idea of skipping the line for your coffee from inception to international scale. He has also held product, marketing, and user experience leadership positions at Target and Target.com.
“We’re inspired by all the ways digital products can support and even enhance tangible, real-world, sensory-filled experiences like taking a car for an evening drive or piloting around a circuit at speed. Dan is uniquely positioned to enrich our members’ experiences, whether seated in their living room, walking a concours field or behind the wheel of their favorite car,” McKeel Hagerty, CEO of Hagerty, said.
Hagerty offers a full spectrum of digital products for car lovers around the globe including My Garage, a virtual vehicle storage space, showroom and hangout; DriveShare, a peer-to-peer enthusiast car sharing platform; Hagerty Insider, an app and publication which empowers users to track value trends across more than 47,000 vehicles; Hagerty Market Rating, an industry-leading indicator which monitors broad trends in the collector car market; and more. In his role, Beranek will be responsible for integrating with leadership to create a digital roadmap inclusive of existing properties and new partner offerings, the release added.
“I’m fascinated by the vision McKeel and Kelly have laid out for Hagerty, and I am excited to help bring to life the auto enthusiast platform opportunity we’re so uniquely positioned to own,” Beranek said.
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