ISSUE 1401 JANUARY 6, 2014 The Weekly Digital Magazine for...

ISSUE 1401ISSUE 1401JANUARY 6 2014

The Weekly Digital Magazine for the Sporting Goods Industry

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RUN WITH CONFIDENCE THIS WINTER

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JANUARY 6 2014 | SGBWeeklycom 3

Copyright 2014 SportsOneSource LLC All rights reserved The opinions expressed by writers and contributors to SGB WEEKLY are not necessarily those of the editors or publishers SGB WEEKLY is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts photographs or artwork Articles appearing in SGB WEEKLY may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the express permission of the publisher SGB WEEKLY is published weekly by SportsOneSource LLC 2151 Hawkins Street Suite 200 Charlotte NC 28203 7049873450 Send address changes to SGB WEEKLY 2151 Hawkins Street Suite 200 Charlotte NC 28203 7049873450

Senior Business Editor

Thomas J Ryan

tryansportsonesourcecom

Contributing Editors

Aaron H Bible Bill Kendy

Charlie Lunan Matt Powell

Editorial amp Creative Director

Teresa Hartford

teresasportsonesourcecom

Senior Graphic Designer

Camila Amortegui

camilasportsonesourcecom

Advertising Sales

Account Managers

Buz Keenan

buzsportsonesourcecom

2018875112

Katie ODonohue

katieosportsonesourcecom

8282443043

Circulation amp Subscriptions

subssportsonesourcecom

Group PublisherEditor In Chief

James Hartford

jamessportsonesourcecom

3039977302

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JANUARY 6 2013ISSUE 1401


14MAKING NEWS

4 Giving Back Phiten Partners with Be The Match 6 Gone But Not Forgotten

18 Industry Calendar

FINANCIALS 7 Sporting Goods Stocks Enjoy Rally In 2013

MOVERS amp SHAKERS 8 Year in Review 2013

MERGERS amp ACQUISITIONS10 Fever Ensues In 2013

FEATURE14 Sporting Goods Bounceback Continues

4 SGBWeeklycom | JANUARY 6 2014

Phiten best known for its titanium necklaces featuring Aqua-Metal materials has launched a first-time partnership with Be The Match a nonprofit which helps patients with blood cancers receive life-saving bone marrow and um-bilical cord blood transplants

Representing its first national cause-related effort Phiten Help Be The Match Eliminate Blood Cancer program is designed to increase aware-ness of the national Be The Match Registry and to raise money to help ensure that every person who needs a bone marrow transplant receives one The company has designed a limited edition Phiten x Be The Match Tornado Necklace with 25 percent of the net sales supporting the Be The Match mission

The newly launched Phiten x Be The Match Tornado Necklace ($35 USD) is exclusively avail-able at wwwPhitenUSAcomBeTheMatch The dual-coiled necklace features the unique Be The Match colors It is designed with an outer nylon fabric permeated with Phitens Aqua-Titanium technology which cov-ers an elastomer compound core and is held together by custom seam guards

Phiten athletes and Be The Match Ambassadors of Hope CJ Wilson Josh Hamilton and JB Shuck have also joined the cause to support the program

with their Step Up to the Plate Be a Hero public service announcementThe partnership comes as Phiten known for the Phiten Tornado

necklace worn by many players in Major League Baseball celebrates 15 years of business in the US and more than $100 million in sales of health and wellness products in North America Phiten was launched in Japan in 1983 and is now in over 30 countries Its product range based on

precious-metal technologies has expanded to athletic tape compression sleeves body support necklaces and bracelets addressing activities from motocross and surfing to running volleyball and kendo

Looking back we watched the Boston Red Sox break The Curse of the Bambino wearing Phiten necklaces signed a licensing agreement with MLB NBA and the NHL providing our products to many of the top athletes in the world and

have given countless everyday athletes the technology they crave said Joe Furuhata vice president of Phiten USA Looking forward we will continue to expand our product lines and market segments to meet the needs of athletes in all walks of life and work with organizations like Be The Match to help make a difference in peoples lives

Phiten Partners with Be the Match

Pro baseball players JB Shuck CJ Wilson and Josh Hamilton wear the Phiten x Be The Match Tornado Necklace supporting Phitens national giving effort

The Limited Edition Phiten x Be The Match Tornado Necklace available at PhitenUSAcomBeTheMatch Twenty-Five percent of the net sales support the Be The Match mission to save lives through marrow transplants

NEWS I G IV ING BACK

6 SGBWeeklycom | DECEMBER 23 2013

GoNE BuT NoT FoRGoTTEN

Carol M White who passed away on October 21 was best known in the sports and fitness industry as the author and namesake of the Carol M White Physical Education Program (PEP) Act which has provided $800 million in federal funds to quality physical education since 2002 Carol M White worked for then-Senator Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) for 21 years retiring as his chief of staff in 2002 It was in this capacity that White authored the PEP Act which is still currently funded

Joe Weider who passed away at the age of 93 founded many of the worldrsquos most popular bodybuilding magazines including Muscle and Fitness Flex Menrsquos Fitness and for women Shape Weider and his brother Ben also founded the International Federation of Body Builders which sponsored the Mr Universe and Mr Olympia contest On the product side he developed fitness equipment like the Solid Steel Tricep Bomber as well as an extensive food supplementrsquos range

Bob Meistrell who co-founded Body Glove died at the age of 84 Body Glove which cel-ebrated its 60th anniversary in 2013 was co-founded with Meistrells late twin brother Bill Both earn credit for helping develop in the 1950s the first neoprene wetsuit at the time using insulating material from the back of re-frigerators

Douglas Dayton who led the transformation of the familyrsquos Dayton Hudson department store business into the discount giant Target died at the age of 88

Doug Abromeit who helped start the US For-est Service National Avalanche Center died at the age of 65 in a biking accident

Achieve Your GoAls

As the broadest deepest and most timely data available for the US Sports and Outdoor Active Lifestyle Market SportScanInfo is the weekly retail point-of-sale data reporting solution To learn more about how we can help your business call 7049873450 or email sportscansportsonesourcecom

Breadth of data depth of data timeliness of data

SportScanInfocom

NEWS


compAnY 123113 123112 percent chAnGe

Adidas 9187 6636 +384Bauer Performance Sports 1417 1059 +338Big 5 1982 1281 +546Brown Shoe 2814 1813 +552Cabelas 6666 4175 +597Compass Diversified Holdings 196 1471 +332Columbia Sportswear 7875 5336 +476Crocs 1592 1439 +106Canadian Tire 12440 8100 +536Deckers Outdoor 8446 4027 +1097RG Barry 1930 1417 +362Dorel Industries Inc 4046 3595 +125Dicks Sporting Goods 5810 4549 +277Delta Apparel 1698 1398 +214DSW Inc 4273 3254 +313Callaway Golf 843 646 +305Escalade Inc 1177 498 +1363Jarden Corp 6135 3447 +780Finish Line 2817 1868 +508Foot Locker 4144 3139 +320Genesco 7306 5500 +328G-III Apparel 7396 3423 +1161Gildan Activewear 5331 3626 +470Garmin 4619 3893 +186

Hanesbrands 7027 3546 +982Hibbett Sports 6715 5270 +274Johnson Outdoors 2695 1987 +356Lululemon Athletica 5903 7623 (226)Nike Inc 7864 5090 +545Nautilus 843 351 +1402Pacific Sunwear 334 159 +1101Puma 23465 22402 +47Rocky Brands 1457 1280 +138Sturm Ruger 7309 4378 +669Shoe Carnival 2901 2033 +427Skullcandy Inc 721 779 (74)Skechers USA 3313 1850 +791Sport Chalet 109 165 (339)Sequential Brands Group 540 500 +80Smith amp Wesson 1349 844 +598Tillys 1145 1349 (151)Under Armour 8730 4853 +799VF Corp 6234 3703 +683Weyco Group 2943 2287 +287Winmark Corp 9262 5684 +629West Marine 1423 1075 +324Wolverine World Wide 3396 2035 +669Quiksilver 877 425 +1064Zumiez 2600 1941 +340

The Standard amp Poors 500 Index jumped 296 percent in 2014 its best year since 1997 The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 265 percent the biggest gain since 1995 Many sporting goods related stocks likewise enjoyed the fun with Deckers Outdoor Nautilus Quiksilver Escalade Pacific Sunwear and G-III Apparel more than doubling in price The only declines came from Lululemon Skullcandy Tillyrsquos and Sport Chalet


SPoRTING GoodS SToCkS ENjoY RallY IN 2013

NEWS I F INANCIALS

Nike Incrsquos Charlie Denson Nike Brand president since 2006 announced plans to retire in january 2014 setting off a wide scale recasting of responsibilities across the companyrsquos executive suite Trevor Edwards formerly EVP of brand and category management became Nike brand president Eric Sprunk formerly the EVP of merchandising and product became Nike Incrsquos Coo Jeanne Jackson formerly the president of direct-to-consumer became president of product and merchandising across footwear apparel and equipment categories Dr Thomas Clarke formerly president of new business development became president of innovation

Lululemon Athletica Inc appointed Laurent Potdevin a long-time Burton executive who most recently ran ToMS shoes as its CEo Potdevin succeeds Christine day who served as the companyrsquos CEo since 2008 and announced her intention to resign in june after a widely covered recall of see-through yoga pants Tara Poseley formerly president of apparel at kmart was named chief product officer

Under Armourrsquos Kip Fulks added president of product to his responsibilities as Coo while Henry Stafford formerly SVP of apparel accessories and outdoor took over as president of North america The company added Susie McCabe formerly from Ralph lauren as SVP global retail and Jason LaRose formerly from Express as SVP global e-commerce

To maximize the potential of both adidas and Reebok the Adidas Group united both brands under one management team in North america to jointly operate them Patrik Nilsson formerly president of adidas North america was appointed president adidas Group North america to lead the united organization He also assumed global responsibility for Reebok-CCM Hockey Uli Becker president of Reebok North america left the company

Puma SE appointed Bjoumlrn Gulden who formerly led the danish jewelry brand Pandora as its CEo He succeeded Franz koch who left the company at the end of March Andy Koehler was appointed Coo

Recreational Equipment Inc (REI) named Jerry Stritzke as the companys president and CEo following an extensive national search Stritzke most recently served as president and Coo for Coach Inc

Sally Jewell the former petroleum engineer and banker who led REI for the last eight years was sworn in as the 51st Secretary of the Interior

LLBeans long-time chairman and former CEo Leon A Gorman retired succeeded by Shawn Gorman the founderrsquos great-grandson

The Sports Authorityrsquos board of directors appointed Michael Foss formerly at Petco and Circuit City to the position of CEo following the retirement of Darrell Webb Paul Okimoto formerly at RadioShack was hired as chief marketing officer

Gander Mountain promoted Mike Owens to the position of president and Coo owens had been Gander Mountainrsquos EVP and Coo since joining the company in 2009

The Finish Line Incrsquos Steve Schneider formerly president and Coo transitioned to the role of EVP of strategic initiatives effective july 20

The North Face appointed Tony Erlick to VP of sales

Patagonia Inc promoted Doug Freeman to the position of chief operating officer Joy Howard was appointed VP of marketing and John Collins VP of global sales

Icebreaker hired Mark Koppes formerly at Backcountrycom and Columbia Sportswear as VP of product Cathy Quain became Icebreakerrsquos first global VP of retail

Columbia Sportswear Company appointed Russ Hopcus as SVP of North american sales a newly created position Shawn Cox was appointed SVP of retail another newly created position

Ibex Outdoor Clothing appointed Ted Manning as the companyrsquos new CEo Manning joins Ibex after 18 years at Eastern Mountain Sports and a brief stint as chief marketing officer at City Sports

Mike Abbott who joined Keen as its president in early july left by october Founder owner and CEo Rory Fuerst assumed his duties

Wolverine Worldwide appointed Gene McCarthy as president of the Merrell brand McCarthy was most recently SVP of footwear for under armour and had previously been co-president for Timberland and SVP of global footwear for Reebok

on december 30 2013 Crocs Inc announced that John McCarvel its CEo plans to retire in april The company at the same time announced Blackstone Group lP would invest $200 million into the company In october Crocs appointed former Walmart executive Greg Sullivan general manager of Crocs americas region

Year in review 2013

MOVERS amp SHAKERS


Hi-Tec Sports appointed Brian Cyr as its first uS-based product and design director Peter Shean became its uS VP of sales and product

Vibram appointed Antonio Dus to CEo Vibram Worldwide

Newton Running named Craig Heisner as its president Heisner most recently served as VP of marketing sales and product merchandising at li-Ning where he led the Chinese companyrsquos introduction into the uS market

Brooks Sports Inc appointed Anne Cavassa as VP of global apparel She will manage the Moving Comfort brand and business as well as the Brooks Running Company apparel business

on the heels of the completion of the april 30th merger between Eland World ltd and k-Swiss Inc ELand named a new global executive team to oversee the newly formed k-Swiss Inc entity The k-Swiss Inc global executive team will be led by Truman Kim chairman Larry Remington president and CEo Barney Waters CMo and Wim Tuijl managing director of Europe Middle East and africa

Deckers Outdoor Corporation appointed Jeffrey Bua formerly Mozo brand president as Teva brand president Bua replaces Joel Heath who left the company to pursue other opportunities Dave Mahoney Teva director of commercial sales for the past five years became VP of sales

Sandy Schwarzenbach formerly VP sales teen and sporting good chains for North america for Quiksilver and dC at QuiksilverInc joined Vans as director of apparel national accounts

Volcom appointed Kevin Meehan as its new president of North america

Sof Sole a division of Implus Corporation based in durham NC appointed Drew Davies as manager of national accounts

Superfeet President Bill McLean retired replaced by John Rauvola who joined Superfeet in March

Timbuk2 hired Cindy Feinauer formerly at SmartWool as director of uS sales

Rod McGeachy formerly CEo of Tandy Brands accessories joined Delta Apparel as president of the companys Soffe division

2XU the maker of performance athletic apparel appointed Kevin Roberts as CEo Roberts was formerly SVP within adidasrsquo Sports Performance division

Zoot Sports the maker of performance apparel wetzoots footwear and accessories named Erik Vervloet as its VP and general manager Vervloet had worked as VP of sports marketing for k-Swiss and was most recently chief marketing officer for the World Triathlon Corporation

Skullcandy Inc appointed Hoby Darling as president and CEo darling was formerly general manager Nike+ digital Sport

Woolrich hired Chris Nitzsche as national sales manager and Chris Megale as sales director

Billabong appointed Ed Leasure former founder of Quiet Flight Surfboards as acting president of the americarsquos division

VF Corp appointed Laurie Etheridge as president of Lucy Activewear Etheridge was previously global SVP at levis for womens merchandising and design at levi Strauss amp Co

Easton-Bell Sports Inc which owns the Easton Bell Riddell and Giro brands appointed board member and former CEo and co-owner Terry Lee executive chairman and CEo Tim Mayhew a managing director of Fenway Consulting Partners llC and an Easton-Bell Board member since 2004 was appointed president and chief operating officer

Mike Ballardie has been named CEo of Prince Global Sports He had been responsible for operations in the eastern hemisphere for Prince for nearly 10 years

Polartec LLC appointed Doug Kelliher to VP of product management

Jimmy Jazz promoted Robert Butler to VP and general merchandise manager of apparel footwear and accessories for jimmy jazz Stores decibel Stores and jimmy jazzcom

Black Diamond Equipment promoted Brian Mecham to VP of North american wholesale and reassigned apparel line sales manager Bill Sinoff to take Mechams place as North american director of wholesale The two work closely with Chris Grover who was appointed to the newly created position of global go-to-market director

LaCrosse Footwear Inc the parent of danner and laCrosse appointed Robert Sasaki as its new president Sasaki previously served as a finance director at Nike Inc where he focused on asia

110 a maker of compressionrecovery gear for runners bikers mixed-martial arts and other athletes hired Austin Chow as president Chow joined 110 from IMG licensing where he developed and managed co-branded programming with ESPN

Outdoor Research named Ken Meidell a senior executive at Cascade designs as its president and chief operating officer Meidell comes to oR after 12 years at Cascade designs where he held a variety of posts from VP of sales and marketing and VP of the outdoor Group to chief information officer

Birkenstock USA named David Kahan as CEo starting june 1 kahan will drive the strategy development and growth of the German-made footwear brand in the united States

K-Swiss appointed Eric Sarin formerly with le Coq Sportif and adidas as the companyrsquos new VP of product

Sanuk a division of deckers outdoor appointed Jeff Fitzhugh has joined as VP of sales for North america He was most recently a SVP at dC Shoes

Brian Enge assumed the role of president at SKLZ the maker of athletic training devices Enge was most recently an executive at The active Network and known for his successful tenure as CEo of Zoot Sports SklZ also named Aaron Azevedo VP of product and david Schultz VP of sales

Dorel Industries Inc in december announced the departure of Robert P Baird group president and CEo of the companys nearly $1 billion Recreationalleisure segment which includes Cannondale Schwinn GT Mongoose Caloi IronHorse and Sugoi Peter Woods the segments CFo was named interim president

Fanatics Inc hired Raphael Peck as president Fanatics apparel Peck was most recently chief merchandising officer at oakley

Amer Sports appointed Mike Dowse president of amer Sports Ball Sports business area replacing Chris Considine who left the company

Nuun the maker of electrolyte sports drink tablets appointed Kevin Rutherford as CEo

Johnson Outdoors Gear Inc the camping equipment company appointed Christopher Martens as business director - camping

Nixon the Southern California-based watch and accessories brand named Tom Jones formerly at dC Shoes as the brandrsquos newly appointed creative director

Clif Bar amp Company President and Coo Kevin Cleary was promoted to the position of CEo owners Gary Erickson and kit Crawford will continue as co-chairs of Clif Bar amp Companyrsquos board of directors and become co-chief visionary officers guiding the companyrsquos Five aspirations business model

Klean Kanteen President Jim Osgood was promoted to CEo and chairman of the companys board of directors osgood started with the company in 2011 and will be replacing long-time CEo darrel Creswell


merGers amp Acquisitions

Fever ensuesin 2013


ith heavy attention from the private equity world as well as some newer and some older strategic buyers merger activity showed no

signs of slowing down in 2013The activity continues to be driven by significant cash on corporate balance

sheets more confidence in the overall economy the healthy stock market and continued low interest rates Private equity is also said to be sitting on the larg-est amount of dry-powder ndash money-pledged but not invested - ever

aMoNG FooTWEaR BRaNdSK-Swiss Inc owner of K-Swiss and Palladium was acquired by South Korea retail and fashion giant ELand World Ltd in a deal valued at $170 million ELand soon thereafter acquired contemporary comfort footwear brand OTZ Shoes Hoka One One the oversized running shoe brand popular with ultra-runners was bought by Deckers Outdoor

Barely two years after buying both brands as part of its acquisition of American Sporting Goods (ASG) Brown Shoe Co sold Avia and Nevados for $74 million to Galaxy Brand Holdings Inc which owns And1 Avia soon thereafter opened up distribution to Wal-Mart

IN THE HuNT amp FISH CaTEGoRYBushnell Group Holdings was acquired for $985 million in cash by Alliant Techsystems (ATK) the worldrsquos largest ammunition manufacturer Earlier in the year ATK acquired Savage Sports one of the worlds largest manufactur-ers of hunting rifles and shotguns

More attention went to the non-sale of Freedom Group Inc the parent of Bushmaster DPMS and Remington Arms and other firearms brands Un-der pressure from investment funds Cerberus Capital Management LP an-nounced plans to sell the business shortly after the December 2012 Newtown school shootings (A Bushmaster rifle was used in the tragedy) In December 2013 Cerberus was close to finding a minority investor to help buyout fund investors no longer wanting to own Freedom Group

IN THE ouTdooR SPaCESpyder was acquired by Authentic Brands Group which has quickly built up a sizeable sporting goods brand portfolio that also includes Prince Bobby Jones TapOuT and Sportcraft ABG established Li amp Fung USA as the brandrsquos licensee partner in a move designed to help make Spyder a bigger player in sportswear and footwear as well as in Asia

Canada Goose which had been family owned since its founding over 55 years ago was sold to Bain Capital Dani Reiss CEO of Canada Goose remained in his position and kept a ldquosignificant minority stakerdquo PE fund Altor bought ski maker Rossignol with plans to use its experience turning around Norwegian clothing brand Helly Hansen to help the French company push into ski wear

A controlling stake in Timbuk2 the messenger bag specialist was acquired by an investment group led by former Timberland COO Ken Pucker along with Timbuk2 management Bruckmann Rosser Sherrill amp Co (BRS) a New York-based private equity firm acquired Royal Robbins Inc from Kellwood Co

Implus manufacturer of Sof Sole and Yaktrax acquired the shoe care in-sole and shoelace assets from Penguin Brands Inc With the sale Nathan the running accessories specialist became a standalone company under its current ownership and leadership team

Onex Corp a PE group acquired Nielsen Expositions which operates Outdoor Retailer Interbike and other trade shows for $950 million in cash

and renamed the business Emerald Expositions In December the new busi-ness agreed to acquire George Little Management which operates the Surf Expo and other shows

IN THE SuRF WoRldBillabong reached an agreement in September with US hedge funds Oaktree Capital and Centerbridge Partners for a $385 million debt and equity financ-ing deal following a long sales process Neil Fiske who most recently turned around Eddie Bauer was appointed CEO and has implemented a turnaround plan focused on its ldquobig threerdquo brands Billabong Element and RVCA

Billabong earlier in the year sold Dakine the action sports and outdoor accessories and apparel company to Altamont Capital Partners while selling Canadian retail chain West 49 in November to YM Inc Itrsquos still exploring op-tions for its ldquoemerging brandsrdquo Von Zipper Honolua Surf Company Kustom Palmers Surf Xcel Tigerlily and Sector

Quiksilver Inc has also been realigning under Andy Mooney the for-mer head of consumer products at Walt Disney Co who became CEO in January 2013 With a similar focus on core brands Quiksilver Roxy and DC Shoes Quiksilver sold Mervin Manufacturing designer and manufacturer of Lib-Tech GNU and Roxy snowboards to Altamont Capital It also an-nounced plans in early December to divest and exit Surfdome Shop Ltd Hawk Designs Inc its Moskova brand and its business under license with Maui and Sons

oN THE RETaIl SIdEMuch of the action took place in the run specialty channel led by Running Specialty Group (RSG) - the alliance between The Finish Line and Gart Capi-tal Partners that over the past year-and-a-half built up a 47-unit chain Boulder Running Co BlueMile and Bob Ronckerrsquos Running Spot all joined RSG this year

Fleet Feet also stepped up its expansion efforts over the last two years and now has 112 locations Maine Running Co and Offrsquon Running this year con-verted their stores to Fleet Feet locations in a new strategy for the franchiser Fleet Feet outright purchased Gary Smiths Easy Runner in Little Rock AK

Foot Locker Inc acquired Runners Point Group which operates more than 200 stores under the Runners Point and Sidestep nameplates largely in Germany It also continues to operate three Run by Foot Locker stores in the US Another potential consolidator is Dickrsquos Sporting Goods which now has three True Runner locations including one recently opened on Boylston Street in Boston

THE TEaM dEalER CHaNNElAlmost singularly driven by BSN Sports the team dealer channel continues to undergo rapid consolidation Over the course of the year BSN acquired Sports Gear in Cullman AL Spokane Athletic Supply in Spokane WA Sols in Ambridge PA Kohlmyer Sporting Goods near Cleveland OH and Holovak amp Coughlin (HampC) in Arlington MA BSN also acquired Herff Jones the manufacturer of graduation-related materials and educational products as well as cheerleading apparel and services

An investment group led by Mark Marney founder and former CEO of The Golf Warehouse and Baseball Savings acquired Team Express Distribut-ing LLC owner of the popular BaseballExpresscom Softballcom Footbal-lAmericacom and TeamExpresscom

Lids Sports Group which had acquired Anaconda Sport Brand Athletics and Impact Sports in past years to quickly create a sizeable team dealer

w


presence slowed down the pace with only one team acquisition - Shawnee OK-based Baptistrsquos Athletic Supply in 2013

Lids Sports Group made more noise in the fan apparel space with its acquisition of Canadarsquos Game On Sports which primarily sells NHL jer-seys and headwear as well as Fan Outfitters which operates seven brick-and-mortar retail stores lo-cated in Kentucky and Oklahoma It also acquired the rights to operate retail concessions inside Rex-all Place the home arena of the Edmonton Oilers marking its first NHL arena partnership

Fanzz the 94-unit fan chain owned by the par-ent of the Utah Jazz acquired Just Sports another fan chain that operates 27 stores in Washington Oregon Idaho and Montana

dEEP-PoCkETEd CoMPaNIES HEld oFF BuYINGWolverine Worldwide was busy absorbing its $1125 billion October 2012 acquisition of Col-lective Brandsrsquo Performance + Lifestyle Group (PLG) which included Sperry Top-Sider Saucony Stride Rite and Keds

VF Corp was among the bidders for Billabong but also didnrsquot make an acquisition in its core out-door and action sports categories It was likewise integrating its $23 billion Timberland Cos acqui-sition which closed in September 2011

Nike Inc sold Cole Haan to Apax Partners in February after selling Umbro to Iconix Brands Group in October 2012 as it increased its focus on its remaining core brands Nike Jordan Converse and Hurley

Jarden Corp whose stable of brands includes Rawlings K2 and Marmot made a big acquisition in acquiring Yankee Candle for $175 billion but hasnt made an acquisition in the sportsoutdoors segment since Zoot in 2009

Kering the parent of Puma acquired Volcom in 2011 and Cobra in 2010 but hasnrsquot added any more brands to its Sports amp Lifestyle segment over the last two years

Adidas Amer Sports and Columbia Sports-wear are among other majors that have not made a sizeable acquisition in some years

Other notable mergers taking place in the industry over the last year

raquo Cramer Products Inc a leader in the sports medicine industry merged with Performance Health a manufacturer and marketer of Thera-Band Biofreeze Perform and Hygenic branded products

raquo Bauer Performance Sports acquired Com-bat Sports a designer of composite baseball

and softball bats hockey sticks and lacrosse shafts

raquo Under Armour acquired MapMyFitness which operates MapMyRuncom and Map-MyRidecom

raquo Jawbone maker of wireless audio and fitness-tracking devices acquired BodyMedia

raquo L Capital Asia a private equity fund spon-sored by French luxury retail giant LVMH acquired a 40 percent stake in 2XU the Aus-tralian-based compression apparel brand

raquo Xterra Wetsuits was sold back to founder Keith Simmons and business partner Glynn Turquand

raquo The Warnaco Group Inc the parent of Spee-do was acquired by PVH Corp

raquo PVH Corp sold its GH Bass amp Co footwear division to G-III Apparel Group Ltd

raquo Heelys was acquired by Sequential Brands Group Inc and licensed to BBC Interna-tional

raquo Rocky Brands acquired Creative Recreation a lifestyle footwear brand best known for its collection of upscale sneakers

raquo Dr Martens was sold to Permira Funds a private equity firm that owns Hugo Boss and New Look

raquo Native Shoes the lightweight EVA footwear brand was acquired by Scott Hawthorn one of the companyrsquos original founders in addi-tion to a small group of private investors

raquo Pacific Vector Holdings Inc acquired a con-trolling stake in DNA LLC which owns the Alien Workshop Habitat and Reflex skate-boarding brands

raquo Demon International LLC doing business as Action Sports Group acquired Flexmeter a developer of protective wrist guards for ac-tion sport athletes

raquo GoPro acquired General Things Inc a digital design and software studio based in San Francisco that has been instrumental in helping GoPro advance its business backend and consumer-facing web development

raquo OtterBox maker of protective cases for handheld devices acquired DBA LifeProof maker of protective cases for smartphones and tablets

raquo Braven LLC a Provo UT startup that makes ruggedized portable Bluetooth speakers for outdoor adventurers was acquired by In-cipio Technologies Inc an Irvine CA-based designer and manufacturer of mobile device accessories

raquo Sneaker Villa Inc the Philadelphia-based urban footwear chain was acquired by Goode Partners

raquo FGL Sports Ltd a division of Canadian Tire Corporation acquired Pro Hockey Life Sporting Goods Inc

raquo Backcountrycom acquired Bergfreundede a similar outdoor gear website serving Ger-many Austria and Switzerland to spread its reach to Europe

raquo Alleson Athletic the manufacturer of athletic team apparel acquired Battlefield Collection an official licensed provider of military ath-letic wear for the armed forces

raquo Escalade Inc acquired the indoor games business of DMI Sports marketers of Arach-nid Nodor and Winmau darting Prince and Head table tennis and Minnesota Fats bil-liards

raquo Hedstrom bought the sporting goods and game company Regent Sports Corporation

raquo Bownet the maker of portable sports nets and goals acquired No-Errors an Arizona-based sports bag manufacturer

raquo CriticalPoint Capital the investment affiliate of CriticalPoint Partners acquired Organized SportsWear which manufactures physical education uniforms

raquo POW Inc parent company to POW Gloves and Spacecraft acquired 100 percent owner-ship of Holden Outerwear

raquo NRS the manufacturer and distributor of paddling gear and inflatable watercrafts ac-quired WRSI safety helmets

raquo Sports-Pool AG a Swiss company that pro-duces and markets the Belowzero brand of ski and snowboard apparel acquired Zimt-stern a provider of snow bike and street wear in the German-speaking market

raquo Delta Apparel acquired the Salt Life beach brand

raquo Dorel Industries Inc acquired a 70 percent stake in Brazilian bike maker Caloi which has a 40 percent share of the Brazilian market and operates the largest bike factory outside of Southeast Asia

raquo Pivotal 5 a maker of wellness and handheld fitness products acquired Lifeline USA which supplies functional fitness training equipment

raquo Mad Dogg Athletics Inc a maker of equip-ment-based fitness education and the parent company of Spinning Peak Pilates Body-blade and Resist-A-Ball acquired the Ugi fit-ness products line

raquo Wintersteiger acquired Hotronic Group which produces the Hotronic FootWarmer and the Snapdry Boot amp Glove Dryer

raquo FGX International a leading eyewear designer and marketer and wholly-owned


subsidiary of Essilor International purchased Suntech Optics Inc which owns the Ryders performance sunglasses brand

raquo Sequential Brands Group Inc acquired the Revo sunglass brand from Luxottica Group

raquo McMillan Group International sold its firearms division McMillan Fire-arms to Strategic Armory Corps LLC (SAC)

raquo ARK Defense Group bought Osprey Defense LLC a manufacturer of a self-cleaning piston conversion kits

raquo Martin Archery Inc including the Damon Howatt line was acquired by Diversis Capital LLC from the Martin family

raquo Fishpond creators of fly-fishing and outdoor travel gear and accessories acquired Nomad Nets

raquo Orvis acquired Scientific Anglers and Ross Reels businesses from 3M It later in the year sold Ross Reels to Mayfly Group LLC

raquo Uncle Josh acquired Acme Tackle Co raquo Williamson-Dickie Mfg Co acquired Walls Industries and its hunting

apparel brands (10X Mossy Oak Walls Legend) raquo The Safariland Group a global provider of a range of safety and surviv-

ability products designed for the public safety military professional and outdoor markets acquired Tactical Command Industries Inc

raquo FAM Brands the parent of Marika acquired the Zobha yoga and fitness apparel line from Kellwood Corp

raquo Bownet a supplier of portable sports nets and goals acquired South Bat an Argentinian Guayaibi Wood Bat manufacturer with offices in South-ern California

raquo Invista bought out the apparel related fiber assets of Advansa includ-ing the German companys licensing rights to Invistarsquos Coolmax and Thermolite trademarks in Europe Middle East and Africa and Advansarsquos Thermocool brand and related technologies and staff

raquo Noble Biomaterials Inc manufacturer of X-Static silver fiber tech-nology acquired Carolina Silver LLC maker of silver-based fabric yarn and fiber

raquo Neiman Marcus was sold for $6 billion to Ares Management LLC and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB)

raquo Hudsons Bay Co acquired Saks raquo Sportsmanrsquos Warehouse reacquired 14 Wholesale Sports USA stores

from UFA Co-Operative raquo Meb Keflezighi and Bob Kennedy both holders of Olympic titles be-

came co-owners of Movinrsquo Shoes a three-unit chain of running stores in the San Diego area

raquo Specialty Sports Venture (SSV) part of Vail Resorts Inc acquired Hoigaardsrsquos an outdoor sporting goods store in Minneapolis

raquo Gatorz Inc acquired Ryderz Compound Inc which operates a chain of 34 retail stores in the US under the XRyderz or No Fear store ban-ners

raquo Universal Athletic Service acquired fellow team dealer Metro Athletic of Edina MN

raquo UK-based JD Sports Fashion acquired Tiso Group a 10-door retailer of outdoor clothing and equipment based in Edinburgh Scotland

raquo Sports Direct International Plc acquired majority stakes in two lead-ing European sporting goods retailers Sports Eybl and Sports Experts AG or EAG based in Austria and Sportland International Group (SIG) based in the Baltic region

raquo MarineMax Inc acquired Parker Boat Companyrsquos retail boat sales and service operations in Orlando and Daytona FL

raquo Vista Equity Partners paid $105 billion in cash for Active Network which is used by millions of people to register in races reserve camp sites and enroll in sports leagues

FACEBOOK FACEBOOKCOMCOGHLANSGEAR TWITTER COGHLANSGEARWEB WWWCOGHLANSCOM

SGBweeklyJan2014indd 1 12272013 14525 PM

The sporting goods industry wrapped up another solid year in 2013 continuing its recovery from the economic decline that started in 2008 Home equity finally picked up and consumer confidence in-creased to spur spending through another highly promotional holi-day selling period

The broad US stock market posted its biggest percentage gain since 1997 sidestepping the fiscal cliff at the start of the year the Boston Marathon bombings a near war with Syria a government shutdown and

sPorting goods BounceBack continues

a jump in yields on long-term government bonds to their highest level since July 2011 The year began with unemployment at 79 percent and fell by November to 7 percent

The uncertainties around ObamaCare impacted consumer confi-dence for a period while also pointing to the benefits of physical activ-ity in reducing the nationrsquos heavy health care bill At the close of the year the Conference Board indicated its consumer confidence senti-ment index climbed to 781 from 72 in November

By Thomas J Ryan


football in recent years The recent life-threatening head injury to German racing driver legend Michael Schumacher while skiing and wearing a helmet also pointed out the limits of helmet use overall to some

The attention underscores opportunities to create safer helmets to ab-sorb hits as well as proper fit and safer play across sports and activities

Among categories the basketball footwear category saw a long-awaited comeback but running participation also remained strong spurred on by the growing popularity around color runs mud runs obstacle and other themed runs For seven straight years the number of participants in half marathons nationwide has grown by more than 10 percent each year

An emerging category that took center stage this year is wearable training devices with the opportunity being explored by the big three - Nike Under Armour and Adidas ndash as well as upstarts such as Jawbone and Fitbit and existing watch and monitor players such as Garmin Sunto Polar Timex and Sportline The pending launch of Google Glass promises to heighten the hype and acceptance overall of wearable technologies

The gun category received a strong boost after the December 2012 tragedy in Newtown reinvigorated debate about gun control that drove fears of buying restrictions Hunt amp Fish retail also got much more crowded with Sportsmanrsquos Warehouse Gander Mountain Bass Pro Cabelarsquos and Academy all expanding and Dickrsquos Sporting Goods launching its Field amp Stream concept

In another closely watched rollout Finish Line opened up Finish Line athletic footwear shops inside Macyrsquos while Lids did the same with fan apparel

In the team channel however concussion concerns plagued the sport of football in 2013 In August the NFL agreed to pay $765 million to settle hundreds of cases accusing it of hiding information about the dangers of concussion But stories of former players including legend Tony Dorsett speaking publicly about their memory loss irritability and other health problems has kept the topic on the front pages and continues to threaten the sport

Attributed largely to fears by parents Pop Warner the na-tions largest youth football pro-gram stated that participation dropped 95 percent between 2010 and 2012 A Robert Mor-ris University poll found that 40 percent of adults support a ban on contact football for pre-high school students and nearly 50 percent would ban it before middle school

But other sports are also equally facing challenges According to a National Academy of Sciences report released in November field hockey lacrosse soccer wrestling ice hockey and basketball all proved about as dangerous or more so than

Photo courtesy Google Glass


Among brands the big just keep getting much bigger aided by the opening up of vendor in-store shops inside Dickrsquos Sporting Goods and other full-line stores In its quar-ter ended November 31 Nikersquos sales in North America climbed 9 percent Under Armourrsquos Q3 revenues jumped 26 percent Adidas the worlds number two maker of sports gear has lately been impacted by distribu-tion problems in Russia currency effects and poor sales of golf products All three are gearing up to do battle during the World Cup and Winter Olympics - both being played on the world stage in 2014

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Weather also finally cooperated in 2013 The late wet cold spring in North America and Eu-rope helped snow sports categories while also setting the stage for disappointing sales at the start of the year for the run and cycling indus-try Even more beneficial the first good winter in two years was a boon to ski areas as well as boots hardgoods and outerwear sales

Still the past tough winters feeding global warming fears caused a hangover for many snow-sports and outdoors vendors With buying coming in much closer to demand many orders that typi-cally ship in the third quarter were shipped in the fourth possibly leading some stores to miss opportuni-ties this year after getting stuck with heavy overstocks in past years

ldquoThe industry has approached this season very cautiously and that means that they have bought con-servatively because the last two winters have been so difficultrdquo said Eric Wiseman VF Corprsquos chairman president and CEO on his companyrsquos third quarter conference call

Whether chains will be aggressive in ordering will be closely watched at the upcoming winter trade shows

pulse oF the outDoor consumer stuDY

2013

A market insight study from the sportsonesource Group

For more information or to reserve your copy of the pulse of the outdoor consumer study contact neil schwartz 5616923722 or email sosresearchsportsonesourcecom

SoS Research takes an in-depth look at the key shopping behaviors influences and motivators for americarsquos active outdoor consumer

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6-8 aTa Show Nashville TN

7-9 MWSRa january Show Madison WI

7-9 WWSRa Rocky Mtn Preview denver Co

7-9 WWSRa Northwest Preview Portland oR

9-11 Surf Expo orlando Fl13-14 WWSRa Intermountain Preview Salt lake City uT

13-15 WWSRa NorCal Early Preview Reno NV

14-17 SHoT Show las Vegas NV

15-18 NBS Winter-Specialty Market Fort Worth TX

16-18 Sports licensing amp Tailgate Show las Vegas NV

17-19 Imprinted Sportswear Show (ISS) long Beach Ca

21 oRWM demo day TBa

22-25 outdoor Retailer Winter Market Salt lake City uT

30-2 SIa Snow Show denver Co

FEBRUARY

3-4 SIa on-Snow demo Copper Mountain Co

Athletic Dealers of America1395 Highland AvenueMelbourne FL 32935t 3212540091f 3212427419athleticdealersofamericacom

National Shooting Sports FoundationFlintlock Ridge Office Center11 Mile Hill RoadNewtown CT 06470t 2034261320 f 2034261087nssforg

National Sporting Goods Association1601 Feehanville Drive Suite 300Mount Prospect IL 60056t 8472966742f 8473919827nsgaorg

Nationrsquos Best Sports4216 Hahn BlvdFt Worth TX 76117t 8177880034f 8177888542nbscom

Outdoor Industry Association4909 Pearl East Circle Suite 300Boulder CO 80301t 3034443353f 3034443284outdoorindustryorg

Sports amp Fitness Industry Association8505 Fenton St Suite 211Silver Spring MD 20910t 3014956321f 3014956322sfiaorg

Snow Sports Industries America8377-B Greensboro DriveMcLean VA 22102t 7035569020f 7038218276snowsportsorg

Sports Inc333 2nd Avenue NorthLewistown MT 59457t 4065383496f 4065382801sportsinccom

Sports Specialists Ltd590 Fishers Station Drive Suite 110Victor NY 14564t 5857421010f 5857422645sportsspecialistsltdcom

Team Athletic Goods629 Cepi DriveChesterfield MO 63005t 6365303710f 6365303711tag1com

Worldwide 8211 South 194thKent WA 98032t 2538728746f 2538727603wdi-wdicom

3-4 SIa Nordic demo Copper Mountain Co

5-7 FFaNY New York NY

5-8 Sports Inc outdoor Show Phoenix aZ

6-10 NBS Semi-annual Market Fort Worth TX

9-11 EoRa SE February Show Greenville SC

10-13 Worldwide Spring Show Reno NV

11-13 MWSRa February Show Madison WI 18-19 MWSRa New Model demo Hastings MN

MARCH

4-5 SFIa National Health Through Fitness day Washington dC

14-16 Imprinted Sportswear Show (ISS) atlantic City Nj

APRIL

4-6 Imprinted Sportswear Show (ISS) orlando Fl

7-8 SFIa litigation amp Risk Management Summit Phoenix aZ

27-30 NSGa Management Conference and Team dealer Summit Indian Wells Ca


CALENDAR for full year calendar go to sportsonesourcecomevents

LIGHTWEIGHTPERFORMANCEEVOLUTION

superfeetcom | copySuperfeet Worldwide Inc

CARBON

The result of years of research and field testing CARBON is ideal for the dedicated athlete who wants an edge

Our revolutionary insole achieves a new level of lightweight performance by combining a carbon fiber-reinforced

stabilizer cap with a durable ultralight foam layer CARBONrsquos distinct biomechanical shape and low-volume

design can help improve the fit and feel of tight-fitting high-performance winter footwear and boots


FINd uS oNFaCEBook amp

TWITTER

SGBWEEKLYcom

FacebookcomSPORTSONESOURCE Twitter SGB_maG


1866YAKTRAX | WWWYAKTRAXCOM

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RUN WITH CONFIDENCE THIS WINTER

ORWM Booth 32175




Thomas J Ryan






Teresa Hartford



Camila Amortegui


Advertising Sales

Account Managers

Buz Keenan


2018875112

Katie ODonohue


8282443043




James Hartford


3039977302


SportsOneSourcecom






SOS Research



14MAKING NEWS




























Achieve Your GoAls



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Year in review 2013

MOVERS amp SHAKERS










































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Teresa Hartford



Camila Amortegui


Advertising Sales

Account Managers

Buz Keenan


2018875112

Katie ODonohue


8282443043




James Hartford


3039977302


SportsOneSourcecom






SOS Research



14MAKING NEWS




























Achieve Your GoAls



SportScanInfocom

NEWS








NEWS I F INANCIALS




















Year in review 2013

MOVERS amp SHAKERS










































Fever ensuesin 2013
























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By Thomas J Ryan














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TWITTER

SGBWEEKLYcom



ISSUE 1401 JANUARY 6, 2014 The Weekly Digital Magazine for...

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Transcript of ISSUE 1401 JANUARY 6, 2014 The Weekly Digital Magazine for...