After coming out of retirement in the spring of 2005 to take a leadership role in the rebuilding of the Prince brand in the U.S., Doug Fonte will step away from the corner office, once again entering retirement. Fonte helped to rebuild the brand over the past three years, extending his responsibilities from just the U.S. to also include Canada and Latin America after his first year on the job, taking on the title of President – Prince Americas.


Fonte's step back into retirement will become effective May 1, 2008.


“This time it's permanent” Fonte said. “Getting back in the tennis industry, contributing to the revival of Prince, working with George Napier (the Prince Chairman and CEO) and the terrific Prince team over the past three years has been a lot of fun and very rewarding, but now is the right time to let a younger generation take the company to the next level. Our brand is in great shape, we have several exciting new products and growth initiatives, either in the pipeline or underway, and the team is fully engaged.”


Commenting on Doug's retirement, and the future, Napier said “Doug's a strong competitor, a clear thinker, and a good friend.  Working with him the past three years has been really good for our team and a privilege for me.  Although Doug is leaving his management role, he will stay connected to Prince as a consultant – through 2009 – and as a Prince ambassador to several organizations including the Arthur Ashe Youth Tennis and Education Center (AAYTE) in Philadelphia and the International Tennis Hall of Fame.”


Napier went on to thank Fonte for his contributions and leadership and wished him much happiness in retirement. “I'm expecting to get a few more strokes when we play golf,” Napier said.


As for the future, Napier commented, “I fully expect to fill Doug's role when the time is right. In the meanwhile I'm proud of the team we have in place at Prince – they are a terrific group of managers and leaders – and I’m looking forward to working directly with each of them…hopefully contributing something to their on-going, tireless pursuit of making Prince the best sporting goods company on the planet.”