Arena Swim USA, a company controlled by Gathering Storm Athletic Group of Carlsbad, CA, has secured exclusive distribution, sales, marketing and product merchandising for Arena branded swimwear in the United States.
The long-term distribution agreement marks Arena’s re-entry into the U.S. market. Arena had started preparing the ground for its U.S. come back by sponsoring top level American Swimmers Aaron Peirsol, Rebecca Soni and Eric Shanteau. It also sponsored two of the most competitive NCAA Swimming Teams – the men's and women's swimming programs at the University of Auburn and the men's swimming program at the University of CAL Berkeley.
The U.S. based management team spearheding Arena's reentry into the market includes President Tim McCool, who possesses 28 years of experience and a proven track record of success with brands such as adidas, Nike and Babolat. At Babolat North America, a leading manufacturer of tennis products, McCool served as president and oversaw U.S. sales and marketing. Under his direction, the brand catapulted to No. 2 in market share within the specialty trade channel in less than a year.
Vice President, Arena Brand & US Distribution Manager Jeff Turpin has more than 25 years of experience in the action sports industry with a career long focus on Swimwear with brands and companies that include; VF/Jantzen, Authentic Fitness/Warnaco, Apparel Ventures & Nautica, and Coastal Apparel & Tommy Bahama. Turpin’s responsibilities at these companies covered Sales, Design & Development, Manufacturing and Distribution.
Vice President of Marketing Bryan Smeltzer brings 22 years of experience with premium brands such as Oakley and K-Swiss.
“We are extremely happy and excited about the huge market opportunity represented by the U.S. market said Cristiano Portas, Arena Group CEO. “We truly believe it is now time to be back on the marketplace, allowing millions of American swimmers and swim-fans to access the products of a brand they have been knowing and appreciating for quite a while. We are absolutely sure that Arena Swim USA and Gathering Storm’s executive team have the right experience to make this come back a success, having worked with some of the world’s greatest sports brands. We look forward to working with these industry veterans, as we have discovered, during our conversations, that we share much in terms of moral values, business principles and best practices.”
“Arena embodies an Italian tradition of technologically advanced products with rich design heritage,” Said McCool. “Swimmers have always taken a more global view of their sport and we believe this brand is poised to make significant in-roads in the U.S. Market as we move towards the 2012 Olympic Games in London.”
Since 1973, Arena creates and markets waterwear products for competitive swimmers and swim-fans and it is recognised as one of the premium brands for high quality swimwear and equipment. Over the last 36 years, the Company has developed a strong expertise in developing best in class products with particular focus on the Pool segment, while also gradually expanding into the Leisure/Beach segment.
Nowadays, Arena operates with commercial subsidiaries in Italy, France and Germany and through a network of worldwide distributors and licensees. The Arena brand is present in 80 countries worldwide, out of which 70 are directly managed by the Arena Group (6 through commercial subsidiaries and 64 through distributors and licensees), while in the Far East (10 countries) the brand is owned and managed by the Descente Group.
Gathering Storm Athletic Group designs, develops, manufactures and markets products, and holds licenses for high-end performance brands throughout the sporting goods industry. The company also handles all distribution, sales, marketing and communications for SKINS USA, an Australian based company that engineers performance recovery product for some of the top athletes and sports organizations around the world.
