Vista Outdoor, Inc. publicly filed its Form 10 registration statement on September 5 with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) concerning its previously-announced plan to separate its Outdoor Products and Sporting Products segments into two independent, publicly traded companies. The company is on track to execute the plan in calendar 2023.
The Outdoor Products company will be a collective of category-defining brands that design and manufacture performance gear and precision technologies. The portfolio of brands, including CamelBak, Camp Chef, Bushnell, Bushnell Golf, Foresight Sports, Fox Racing, Bell, Giro, and Simms Fishing, will be led by a consumer-first culture, consumer insights and analytics, deep channel relationships, operational expertise and shared financial resources. Outdoor Products will immediately be a leading provider of performance gear and precision technologies around the globe. Outdoor Products will serve consumers in a diverse and fast-growing set of categories, representing an estimated $15 billion domestic market in its core, with an estimated total global addressable market in excess of $100 billion.
Outdoor Products will be led by Eric Nyman, who began as CEO of the segment on August 21 and a dedicated management team. Outdoor Products will be well-positioned to deliver sustainable and profitable growth to shareholders. Outdoor Products’ capital allocation strategy will prioritize organic growth and internal investment in new product development, marketing and expanded e-commerce and international sales, opportunistic share repurchases and strategic acquisitions of outdoor businesses in existing and adjacent spaces.
Gary McArthur will continue as interim CEO of Vista Outdoor Inc. until the completion of the spinoff. McArthur will focus on completing the separation of Vista Outdoor’s Sporting Products and Outdoor Products segments in calendar year 2023, in addition to overseeing Vista Outdoor’s corporate, administrative and financial reporting functions, risk management and stockholder engagement, and ensuring strategy cohesion and coordination across both segments. McArthur will continue serving on the Board of Directors of Vista Outdoor, Inc. until the separation and will become the chair of the Outdoor Products company’s Board of Directors upon completion of the spinoff.
“Today’s filing is a critical step toward the creation of two market-leading, independent and highly focused companies,” McArthur said. “As the separation nears, our confidence in the future of both businesses continues to strengthen. Sporting Products—soon to be called The Kinetic Group—and Outdoor Products are well-positioned for continued growth and success as standalone, publicly traded companies.”
Post spinoff, Vista Outdoor will rebrand as The Kinetic Group, whose name, logo and NYSE ticker “HUNT” were announced on August 10. The Kinetic Group will not house any brands listed herein as moving to the new soon-to-be-named Outdoor Products company. Vista Outdoor, Inc. said it would soon announce the name and branding of the Outdoor Products company.
Vista Outdoor’s, Inc. Form 10 registration statement can be viewed here under “Outdoor Products Spinco, Inc.”
Morgan Stanley & Co LLC is acting as financial adviser, and Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is acting as legal adviser to Vista Outdoor in connection with this process.
