LifeStraw, the manufacturer of water filtration products for the outdoor enthusiast and award-winning humanitarian company, announced today that Allison Hill, the brand’s long-time managing director, will assume the role of CEO. Read more
Berlin became the official host of the 2023 Special Olympics World Games during a ceremony in the German capital. Read more
Johnson Outdoors Inc. announced higher sales and double-digit growth in net income during the company’s seasonally slow first fiscal quarter ending December 27, 2019. Read more
OrderMyGear announced that Leonid Rozkin had been promoted to chief financial officer. Read more
The National Retail Federation (NRF) and Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) welcomed Wednesday’s signing by President Trump’s legislation to implement the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Read more
H&M said Karl-Johan Persson had stepped down as CEO to assume the role of chairman after his father Stefan Persson said he would relinquish that role. COO Helena Helmersson has been appointed CEO. Read more
RYU Apparel, the Vancouver-based athletic apparel brand, is seeking to raise $7 million in capital to enter a consulting arrangement and pursue a plan to bring RYU to profitability over the two-year period. Read more
Puma has become the official global partner of Beach Soccer World Wide (BSWW), the sports entity behind the creation and growth of beach soccer. Read more
Sports Specialists Ltd. (SSL) said Hestra earned Supplier of the Year for softgoods, Dynastar/Lange/Look earned the award for hardgoods and Salomon Snowboard earned the award for snowboard supplier. Read more
Adidas will introduce two new fabrics that use 100 percent recycled polyester, Primeblue and Primegreen, and announced several more commitments as part of its goal to use only recycled polyester in its shoes and clothing by 2024. Read more
Asics Corporation announced that its investment subsidiary, Asics Ventures Corporation, invested in a Japanese startup No New Folk Studio Inc., developer of sensing solution Orphe Track, which measures and analyses foot movement. Read more
Donald Sands was named VP of Exxel Outdoors’ Outfitter Group, which includes the SJK brand. Read more
Hydro Flask announced that Scott Alann will retire as global general manager for the brand. Read more
Pittsburgh topped WalletHub’s annual ranking of the best cities for football fans for the second year in a row. Read more
Sortis Holdings Inc., a Portland, OR-based alternative investment fund manager, launched Sortis Growth Venture Fund. The $10 million fund is a hybrid venture capital and consumer-focused private equity fund dedicated to accelerating the speed at which rising consumer brands can reach their full potential. Read more
Winmark Corporation, the parent of Play It Again Sports, announced that the current Executive Chairman, John L. Morgan, 78, would retire as a director and as executive chairman, effective March 1, 2020. Read more
Nike Inc. is facing a probe from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over illicit payments to elite youth basketball players according to a lawyer for Michael Avenatti, the celebrity lawyer facing trial for allegedly trying to extort millions of dollars from Nike, according to Bloomberg News. Read more
J.Crew Group Inc. appointed Jan Singer as chief executive officer. Singer previously held leadership positions at Nike and Spanx. Read more
Penn National Gaming, a regional gambling operator, reached an agreement to acquire Barstool Sports, the digital sports publisher. The deal values the Boston-based sports blog at $450 million. Read more
Milliken & Company has formally acquired Borchers Group Limited, a global specialty chemicals company known for its coating additives and specialty catalyst solutions from The Jordan Company, L.P. Read more
ProGuides, an Esports learning platform, announced a $5 million seed funding round led by M13 with participation from previous pre-seed investors Amplify LA, Quest Venture Partners and the GFR Fund. Read more
The USA Triathlon Board of Directors announced the re-election of three of its members to officer seats — Jacqueline McCook as president, Joel Rosinbum as vice president, Kevin Haas as treasurer, and the election of Keri Serota as secretary. Read more
Stephen Bebis, the founder of Golf Town and former head of Sports and Recreation, has become the newest partner and coach of CEO Coaching International, a leadership development consultancy. Read more
Outdoor Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), released the latest Outdoor Participation Report, showing that just under half the U.S. population does not participate in outdoor recreation at all. Read more
The World Athletics Organization, which governs most international track and field events, will not impose a blanket ban on Nike’s Vaporfly running shoes, according to a report in the Guardian. Read more
The family of the late Delbert Hayes, one of the earliest employees at Nike, made a $3 million donation to establish the Delbert J. Hayes Scholarship in Accounting in the WSU Carson College of Business. Read more
Two days after Kobe Bryant’s death in a California helicopter crash, Nike said it had sold out of all Kobe-related merchandise, contradicting an earlier report that the footwear giant had pulled gear bearing his name from its website. Read more
Toms Shoes LLC has appointed Magnus Wedhammar, former GM of Sanuk, as CEO. Read more
GSM Outdoors, a multi-brand manufacturer of hunting gear, announced Tuesday that the company had completed the acquisition of outdoor accessory and gear manufacturer Hunters Specialties. Read more
Wilson Sporting Goods, MCM Worldwide and the National Football League unveiled Tuesday a collector’s edition football exclusive to Super Bowl LIV in Miami, FL. Read more
Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) on Tuesday announced its Climate Action Corps, a collaborative model for alignment, action and accountability to achieve industry-wide greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions in accordance with Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) guidelines. Read more
Igloo welcomed Ryan Kingman to the newly created position of VP, partnerships. Kingman was the co-founder and chief marketing officer for Stance. Read more
The Gap Inc. closed 29 Gap stores in the U.S. over the weekend. The company, in February 2019, said it planned to shutter about 230 of its namesake brand’s stores over the next two years as part of restructuring efforts. Read more
The 67th PGA Merchandise Show came to a close January, 24 in Orlando, FL as it welcomed nearly 40,000 golf industry professionals from all 50 U.S. states and 80 countries. Read more
The National Football League (NFL) has partnered with NFL Hall of Famer Michael Strahan and NFL Giants legend Carl Banks‘ apparel company G-III Apparel for an exclusive Super Bowl LIV limited-edition capsule collection in celebration of the NFL’s 100th season. Read more
Leslie’s Poolmart Inc., the largest seller of pool and spa products, appointed Michael R. Egeck as CEO. Egeck most recently served as the CEO of PSEB Group, the parent of Pacific Sunwear and Eddie Bauer. Read more
Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC) will open a new location in Roswell, GA in Spring 2020, bringing a new approach to community-based outdoor activities, rentals and education along the Chattahoochee River. Read more
7-Nation, the board sports company that owns Slingshot Sports, Ride Engine and Moonshine MFG, announced that Charles Field-Marsham, a Canadian entrepreneur, had become a new investor in the company. Ken Meidell, the former CEO of Dakine, has joined the company’s board. Read more
Minute Media, the technology and digital publishing platform, announced it had acquired FanSided, the fan-focused sports and lifestyle publisher, from Meredith Corporation. Read more
Scheels All Sports will open a retail store at Southgate Mall located in Missoula, MT, representing its third store in Montana. Read more
The American Alpine Club (AAC) on Monday announced that its CEO search committee selected Koya Leadership Partners to lead its executive search process. Read more
Oregon State University-Cascades will offer a bachelor’s degree in Outdoor Products beginning fall 2020 — one of only a few universities in the U.S. to offer the program. Read more
Academy Sports + Outdoors, title sponsor of the 50th Bassmaster Classic on Lake Guntersville, announced its partnership with Elite Series angler Stetson Blaylock for the upcoming 2020 fishing season. Read more
Foot Locker Inc. announced Monday that its Board of Directors had elected Darlene Nicosia and Tristan Walker as directors of the company, effective February 2. Read more
Columbia Sportswear Co. on Monday announced that at the company’s January 24 Board of Directors meeting, the Board appointed President and CEO Tim Boyle as chairman. Read more
Founder Sport Group, manufacturer of stock and custom sublimated garments for team dealers, decorators and college bookstores, announced Monday that Mike Seferyn had joined the company as chief information officer. Read more
Certain utility patent claims made by Columbia Sportswear Co. against Seirus Innovative Accessories Inc. were upheld as invalid by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the accessories brand announced Monday. Read more
Coefficient Cycling, on Monday, announced the appointment of Beverly Lucas as VP of Global Business Development. Read more
Nike and Adidas joined a host of others in the sports and entertainment world issuing statements honoring the legacy of Los Angeles Lakers basketball great Kobe Bryant. Read more
360 Adventure Collective, formerly Eastern Outdoor Reps Association (EORA), bids farewell to its long-time Executive Director, Debbie Motz effective March 2020. Read more
Saucony, a division of Wolverine Worldwide, is running its first Super Bowl ad that will showcase its “Run for Good” brand messaging. The ad will run on Fox’s streaming platforms during the game. Read more
GAP‘s Chief Marketing Officer and former Adidas marketing veteran, Alegra O’Hare, has stepped down from less than a year after joining the retailer. Read more
Photo courtesy LifeStraw
