Aisle Talk Week Of April 12, 2021

•Jobless Claims Decline To New Pandemic Low
First-time unemployment claims fell sharply last week to 576,000, the lowest weekly figure since March 2020, according to the Labor Department. Read more

•Primary Arms Optics Appoints U.S. Field Sales Manager
Primary Arms Optics has announced the hiring of Katie Ryan as the new U.S. field sales manager. Read more

•Creedmoor Sports Names VP Of Operations
Creedmoor Sports Inc. appointed John Teachey as vice president of operations. Read more

•Sequential Brands Posts Q4 Loss
Sequential Brands Group Inc. reported a loss in the fourth quarter in part due to a charge tied to exiting a lease on its headquarters. Revenues were down 4.1 percent. The company said it continues to evaluate strategic alternatives, including the divestiture of one or more existing brands or a sale of the company and seeks an extension of waivers to cover financial covenant defaults. Read more

April 15, 2021

•Birkenstock Opens Store In Brooklyn
Birkenstock opened a store in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. The Brooklyn store follows the successful openings of the brand’s first two U.S. company-owned retail stores in the SoHo neighborhood of New York City and in Venice Beach, CA. Read more

•Therabody Acquires Smart Muscle Stimulator PowerDot
Therabody, the parent of Theragun, has acquired the PowerDot, a smart muscle stimulator. Read more

•Lids To Open In-Store Shops Inside DSW
Lids announced a partnership with Designer Brands Inc. to open fan apparel in-store shops inside 45 DSW and The Shoe Company locations throughout Canada. The locations include stores in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver. Read more

•Dish Network Sues Peloton, Lululemon And Icon Over Streaming Technology
Dish Network Corp. filed lawsuits against Peloton Interactive, Lululemon Athletica , and Icon Health & Fitness over their workout streaming technology. Read more

•Inov-8 Opens First Brand Store In The UK
Inov-8 opened its first brand store in the outdoor hub of Staveley in the Lake District of the UK. (Read More)

•Mountain Hardwear Names Director Of Marketing
Mountain Hardwear named Matt Burbach director of marketing. Most recently, Burbach served as the director of marketing content & creative for the brand. Read more

•Western Mountain Destinations With Strong Bookings And Rates
With just weeks to go in the six months of the winter ski season, western mountain resorts have been capitalizing on incremental fill in the final two months of the season to boost occupancy and revenue that brought some much-needed recovery to participating resorts in 18 mountain destinations spread across eight western states, according to the most recent Mountain Market Briefing distributed by DestiMetrics. Read more

•March Retail Sales See Strong Rebound
Retail sales rebounded with huge gains in March as government checks fattened consumers’ bank accounts and more vaccinations against COVID-19 made it easier for shoppers to get out of the house and lead to the acceleration of the U.S. economy, the National Retail Federation said. Read more

•Puma, Olympics End ‘Tokyo 2020’ Trademark Tiff
The U.S. Olympic Committee and Puma SE appear to have ended their trademark dispute of the use of “Tokyo 2020” and other Olympic-games-related trademarks, according to a report from Law 360. Read more

•Olin Announces Redemption Of 10 Percent Senior Notes Due 2025
Olin Corp. announced that it has notified bondholders that it intends to redeem all $185 million of its outstanding 10 percent senior notes due October 15, 2025. Read more

•Wolverine Worldwide Appoints Board Member
Wolverine World Wide Inc. announced the appointment of Kathleen Wilson-Thompson to its Board of Directors, effective May 5, 2021. The retired executive previously led human resources for Walgreens and Kellogg Company. Read more

•Anta Sports Posts Significant Q1 Sales Jump
Anta Sports Products Ltd. reported retail sales of Anta branded products for the first quarter recorded 40 percent to 45 percent positive growth year-over-year. Read more

•Escalade’s Sales Climb 59 Percent In First Quarter
Escalade Inc. posted quarterly revenue of $59.2 million in the first quarter ended March 20, an increase of 58.7 percent over the prior year, and a record for its first fiscal quarter, representing its fifth consecutive quarter of record sales. Read more

April 14, 2021

•Perry Ellis Announces Extension and Expansion Of PGA Tour Apparel Licensing PartnershipThe PGA Tour and the golf division of Perry Ellis International (PEI Golf) announced it had extended its apparel partnership. Read more

•Addaday Builds Out Executive Team
Addaday announced the appointment of four strategic hires to help position the brand for its continued global growth. The hires include Luke Rowe as chief operations officer and Jeff Irvin as head of sales. Read more

•GOA Members See Robust Recovery
Grassroots Outdoor Alliance (GOA) reported robust year-to-year retail sales gains in its March membership update last week. The group is up 8 percent on a rolling 12-month basis, with Q1 2021 reported figures showing a 34 percent increase over Q1 2020, according to the group. Read more

•Major League Soccer Secures Top Corporate Sponsor With Procter & Gamble
Major League Soccer announced a big corporate sponsorship deal with Procter & Gamble, a move that could help the league recover from some of its COVID-19 losses. Read more

•WSL Confirms Quiksilver’s Sponsorship Of The Corona Open Mexico
Quiksilver announced that it will be the presenting sponsor for the men’s and women’s Championship Tour, event the Corona Open Mexico, presented by Quiksilver, scheduled for July 2021. Read more

•TeamSnap Partners With Waud Capital to Accelerate Expansion
Waud Capital Partners announced the completion of a strategic partnership with TeamSnap, a sports technology platform providing team, club and league management software. Read more

•Nobull Secures Equity Partner
Nobull, which earlier this year replaced Reebok as CrossFit’s sponsor, has secured an investment from Exeter Capital, a Boston-based private equity firm. Read more

•Play It Again Sports’ Parent Sees Strong Q1 Profits
Winmark Corporation, the parent of Play It Again Sports, reported net income for the first quarter ended March 27, 2021 of $9.31 million, or $2.40 per share, compared to net income of $7.32 million, or $1.87, a year ago. Read more

•Kohl’s Reaches Settlement With Activist Investors
Kohl’s reached an agreement with Activist Investors Macellum Advisors, Ancora Holdings, Legion Partners Asset Management, and 4010 Capital. As part of the agreement, former Lululemon CEO Christine Day will join Kohl’s Board of Directors and two members selected by the Activist Investor Group. Read more

•Remington Ammunition Reopens Plant In Arkansas
Remington Ammunition, acquired by Vista Outdoor out of bankruptcy proceedings last year, announced a reboot of its Lonoke, Arkansas facility. Read more

•L Catterton To Acquire West Marine
L Catterton, the private equity firm, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement under which L Catterton will acquire a controlling interest in West Marine, the nation’s leading retailer in the marine aftermarket, from Monomoy Capital Partners. Read more

•Tempo Raises $220M In New Capital
Tempo announced $220 million in new funding. The Series C round was led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 with participation from new investor Steadfast Capital Ventures and returning investors DCM, General Catalyst, Norwest Venture Partners, and Bling Capital, bringing its funding to nearly $300 million. Read more

•REI’s Sales Slide 12 Percent In 2020
REI Co-op reported sales fell 11.9 percent in 2020 as the Co-Op managed through the challenges presented by the pandemic. REI also reported no profits in 2020 but ended the year in a strong cash position and debt-free, after investing millions in its impact work to combat climate change, address racial equity and support its network of nonprofit partners. REI also launched its Cooperative Action initiative. Read more

April 13, 2021

•Southeast Destination Lodging Running Well Above Pre-Pandemic Levels
After achieving record-setting seasonal rates and revenue for the winter season that ended in February, the most recent results released by DestiMetrics, a division of Inntopia in their monthly Market Briefing, revealed that those upward trends are continuing to surpass results from both last year and the previous year at participating resort properties in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. Read more

•JD Sports Sees “Exceptional Year” For North American Business
JD Sports Fashion Plc, the U.K.-based athletic footwear chain that owns Finish Line, Shoe Palace and DTLR in the U.S., said its North American business “had an exceptional year” in 2020. The gains were boosted by strongly developed online operations by Finish Line amid the pandemic, the benefit of federal stimulus checks and early success with the rollout of the JD chain in the U.S. Read more

•New Balance To Sponsor Boston College
New Balance will replace Under Armour as the new footwear and apparel sponsor for Boston College. The 10-year agreement begins on June 1, 2021. Read more

•Wiley X Announces Move To Frisco, Texas
Wiley X, the protective eyewear brand, announced plans to move its operations from Livermore, CA to Frisco, TX. Read more

•Isbjörn Of Sweden Appoints E-Commerce Manager
Isbjörn of Sweden has appointed Sandra Nielsen as its e-commerce manager. She will join its team at the company headquarters in Stockholm. Read more

•Arcus Hunting Appoints VP Of Sales
Arcus Hunting, LLC announced the appointment of John-Paul (JP) Fischer to the position of vice president of sales. He was most recently at Benelli USA. Read more

•Academy Sports + Outdoors Acquires Redfield Brand From Leupold
Leupold & Stevens, Inc. announced the sale of the Redfield hunting scope brand to Academy Sports + Outdoors. Read more

April 12, 2021

•IHRSA And Fitness Brasil Formalize Event Partnership Through 2026
The International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA) and Fitness Brasil signed an agreement that solidifies its event partnership opportunities for at least six years. Read more

•Adidas Ranks High For Reputation
Adidas ranked sixth on the 2021 Global RepTrak 100, the highest among companies in the active lifestyle space. Nike was 22 and Under Armor, 45. Read more

•Yue Yuen’s Sales Surge In March
Yue Yuen’s consolidated operating revenue reached $870.9 million against $671.6 million a year ago, a gain of 29.7 percent. Read more

•Rebel Sport Extends Partnership With Football Australia
Football Australia announced that it has signed an expanded and extended multi-year partnership with Rebel Sport, Australia’s largest sports retailer, to support the growth of women’s and grassroots football across the country. Read more

•RECALL: Pieps DSP Avalanche Transceivers
Black Diamond has recalled about 66,100 Pieps DSP Avalanche Transceivers. The company has received 65 reports of the transceiver modes switching unexpectedly while in use. One death and one instance of a skier getting caught in an avalanche who suffered a broken arm and minor injuries were both reported in British Columbia. Read more

•PGA Tour Superstore Announces Five New Locations
PGA Tour Superstore announced plans to open at least five new stores in 2021. The new locations are slated to open in New York, Texas and Virginia. Read more

•Nike To Sell Refurbished Footwear
Nike introduced Nike Refurbished, a new program that resells returned shoes at discount prices. Read more

•Urban Outfitters Announces Personnel Changes And A Sales Update
Urban Outfitters Inc. reported Hillary Super has stepped down as global chief executive officer at Anthropologie Group. She was replaced by Tricia Smith, former head merchant at Tilly’s. Read more

•Activist Investor Legion Partners Nominates Seven Directors To Genesco Board
Legion Partners Asset Management LLC, an activist investor, has nominated seven directors to sit on the board of Genesco Inc., the parent of Journeys, according to a letter made public in a filing on Monday. Read more

•Vail Resorts Announces Executive Leadership Changes
Vail Resorts, Inc. announced that Patricia Campbell, president of the company’s mountain division, has made the decision to step down from her position and assume a new role as senior advisor to the company’s mountain division. Read more

•Alterra Mountain Company Announces $207 Million In Improvements
Alterra Mountain Company announces its plans to invest $207 million in capital improvements for the upcoming year, including transformational base area and on-mountain developments at Steamboat, Deer Valley Resort, Squaw Valley Alpine Meadows and Mammoth Mountain. Read more

•SAAMI Appoints Director of Regulatory Affairs
The Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI) promoted Brian Osowiecki to director of regulatory affairs. Read more

•UTS Names New CEO
United Tactical Systems (UTS) announced the appointment of technology and public safety executive Bob Plaschke as CEO. As CEO, Plaschke will be leading all the UTS businesses, including its PepperBall and First Strike divisions. Read more

•EcoCart Raises $3M In Funding
EcoCart, a climate and sustainability-focused e-commerce enablement startup, announced that it had closed $3 million in seed funding led by Base10 Partners’ Chris Zeoli. Read more

•Kohl’s Announces Upsize And Early Tender Results For Cash Tender Offer
Kohl’s Corporation announced the upsize and early tender results for the previously announced cash tender offer for its 9.5 percent Notes due 2025, 4.25 percent Notes due 2025, 4.75 percent Notes due 2023 and 3.25 percent Notes due 2023. Read more