The Hoka brand drove a 3 percent year-over-year increase in the DTC business, which was said to reflect “continued strong growth from international regions and a slight decline in the U.S. due to some unique factors in the quarter.”
Author: SGB Executive

EXEC: Wilson Ball & Racquet Segment Continues DD Growth for Amer Sports
The segment’s overall growth for the quarter was said to be led by Softgoods, which now represents 10 percent of Ball & Racquet Sports segment sales, and the marquee racquet sports franchises.

EXEC: Colt CZ Sees Robust Q1 Results; Acquires U.S.-Based Valley Steel Stamp
Prague-based Colt CZ Group SE saw sales jump 50.3 percent year-over-year in the first quarter due to an acquisition, while announcing it reached agreement to acquire a components supplier based in Greenfield, MA.

EXEC: Nike Rolls Out Price Increase Schedule
Nike will not raise prices on kid’s products in deference to the upcoming back-to-school (BTS) and holiday seasons. The increases will not affect prices on products costing less than $100.

EXEC: Nike Brand Re-Engages with Amazon to Sell Direct to Customers
In a move that was rumored but few saw coming so quickly, the company will re-introduce sales of Nike brand products on Amazon as early as next week, re-engaging after pulling away in 2019 to focus on building its own DTC business.

EXEC: Arc’teryx Still King at Amer Sports But Growth Trend Moderates
For full-year 2025, Amer Sports expects the Technical Apparel segment revenue, which is primarily Arc’teryx, to increase in the range of 20 percent to 22 percent. Segment operating margin is expected at ~21 percent.

EXEC: Vans Hits Fiscal Q4 Turbulence as Brand Recovery Falters
Shares of VF Corp. shed ~13 percent Wednesday after the company reported Vans’ sales fell 20 percent on a currency-neutral basis in the fiscal fourth quarter on top of a 27 percent decline in fiscal Q4 last year.

EXEC: New Hibbett Parent JD Sports Sees Shares Fall as Q1 Disappoints
Group comp store, or like-for-like, sales were down 2 percent for the quarter ended May 3. The market also reacted to potential price increases from higher tariffs affecting U.S. consumer purchasing.

EXEC: Salomon Footwear Continues to Boost the Brand and Parent Amer Sports
The Amer Sports Outdoor Performance segment saw revenues increase 25 percent year-over-year to $502 million in Q1, driven by “very strong performance” in Salomon Softgoods and “good results” in Winter Sports Equipment, following a slow start to the winter season.

EXEC: Amer Sports C-Suite Details Small Tariff Impact and FY Guidance Bump
The parent of the Arc’teryx, Peak Performance, Salomon, Atomic and Wilson Sports brands is far less exposed to U.S. market issues than many other brands and has a far larger Asia, China and Europe component than many others that are more U.S.-centric.

EXEC: Nordstrom, Inc. Shareholders Approve Family’s Take-Private Merger Deal
Following the close of the transaction scheduled for Tuesday, May 20, the Nordstrom Family will have a 50.1 percent majority ownership stake in the company, and Nordstrom will become a private company.

EXEC: Fashion Footwear, LLC Prevails in Appeal Over Pony License Cancellation
The New York Appellate Court’s decision reportedly upheld the lower court’s ruling that Pony’s attempted termination of Fashion Footwear’s license agreement to enter into a license agreement with a new licensee, Genesco, Inc., was improper and invalid.

EXEC: Portland’s Next Adventure Set to Shutter After Epic Summer Retirement Sale
Deek Heykamp and Bryan Knudsen, the owners of Next Adventure, announced this week that their stores would be closing this year and the two friends since childhood would be retiring.

EXEC: Canadian Tire to Keep Hudson Bay Company Brand Alive; Acquires Assets
CTC quietly announced Thursday, May 15 that it had entered into a definitive agreement to become the home of iconic Canadian brands and other intellectual property of the Hudson’s Bay Company

EXEC: Lowa’s Peter Sachs Talks Retirement, Outdoor Industry Changes
Peter Sachs, the longtime U.S. general manager at Lowa, sat down with SGB Executive to talk about his 29-year career building the German boot maker’s U.S. business, the current state of the outdoor industry, and semi-retirement plans.