K2 Licensing & Promotions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of K2 Inc., has launched a new business division that will develop licensing and corporate partnerships for K2's portfolio of more than 30 leading sports brands, including K2, Rawlings, Volkl, Marmot and Shakespeare.
K2LP, which has just completed its first corporate-wide licensing deal with Marvel Enterprises, also announced today the appointment of two sports industry veterans, Robert Strand and Frann Vettor-Gray, to support this new venture.
Scott Dickey, president of K2LP, stated: “Our efforts are off to the right start with the addition of top-tier talent to our team and a new licensing agreement that provides three separate K2 divisions with rights to create new products featuring many of Marvel's outstanding character brands. These developments represent an important milestone and demonstrate that we are open for business and focused on leveraging the collective strength of our category-leading sporting goods brands.
“We intend to tap new sources of revenue and underdeveloped assets for K2 by unlocking latent brand value through strategic licensing relationships in several new product categories,” added Dickey. “In addition, we intend to leverage our broad reach to multiple consumer targets through the creation of unique corporate alliances and partnerships that deliver a connection to the millions of consumers who purchase K2 products every year.”
In conjunction with its launch, the company hired Robert Strand as vice president of licensing and Frann Vettor-Gray as vice president of corporate alliances. Mr. Strand is a five-year veteran of the National Basketball Association, where he was most recently senior director of non-apparel licensing and global premiums. Prior to his league experience, Mr. Strand developed his retail skills as a buyer for Motown Cafe, Ross Stores and FAO Schwarz.
Ms. Vettor-Gray brings extensive experience in sports and entertainment marketing to K2. She worked for both Universal Studios and The Coca-Cola Company prior to joining K2LP. Before that, she played an integral role in developing and implementing the retail licensing and marketing program behind the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games and also held management positions with Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association.
“The addition of Robert and Frann, two accomplished and well-known industry pros, provides us with the strong expertise and vision that will be critical to the continued success and growth of our business. We are thrilled that they have chosen to join us and look forward to their valuable contributions,” stated Dickey.
Through the multi-year agreement with Marvel, K2's Stearns (watersports), Shakespeare (fishing) and Fotoball (licensed sporting goods) divisions have obtained the North American rights to develop an assortment of sports balls, floatation devices and children's fishing sets featuring several premier Marvel franchises. These include Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, X-Men, Captain America, Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Namor, Ghost Rider, and Daredevil Classic as well as Marvel's pre-school line, Spider-Man and Friends.
