New Balance has signed Harvard sprinter Gabby Thomas to a multi-year endorsement contract. Thomas won the 200m 2018 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships and took 2nd in the DI NCAA Outdoor National Track and Field Championships.
Category: Apparel

PGA Tour Superstore Opens Store In Chicago
PGA Tour Superstore announced the opening of the company’s third store in the Chicago region, serving the Vernon Hills and northern Chicago communities.

Express Expands NBA Partnership
Express Inc. expanded the company’s partnership with the NBA. The chain also unveiled the company’s second “NBA Game Changers” campaign and Performance Collection featuring NBA All-Star Victor Oladipo (Indiana Pacers), Mo Bamba (Orlando Magic) and Trae Young (Atlanta Hawks).

Report: Sears Hires Bankruptcy Professionals
Sears Holdings Corporation, the parent of Sears and Kmart, is considering filing for bankruptcy protection as soon as this week as it faces a large debt repayment on Monday, reports The Wall Street Journal. Advisory firm M-III Partners LLC has been hired to prepare the bankruptcy filing, according to the report.
September Retail Jobs Increase More Than 25,000 Over 2017
Retail industry employment in September increased by 25,600 jobs unadjusted over the same time last year despite a seasonally adjusted drop of 23,600 jobs from August, the National Retail Federation said.
Spyder Becomes Presenting Sponsor Of 2018 ColderBOLDER
BolderBOULDER Inc, organizers of the ColderBOLDER 5K, announced Spyder as the presenting sponsor for Colorado’s coldest 5K.

Adidas CEO Sees U.S. Share Gains Continuing
In an interview Tuesday on CNBC, Adidas CEO Kasper Rorsted admitted that Nike has improved its competitive positioning in the U.S. marketplace but he said the Adidas Brand is still gobbling up share in the region. Said Rorsted, “For the third year in a row, there’s no doubt that we are taking share in America.” Rorstead also discussed tariffs, Kanye West and Colin Kaepernick.
BlackStrap Expands Made-in-USA Operation With New HQ, Staff, Retailers
BlackStrap, a made-in-USA manufacturer of facemasks and accessories for winter sports, anglers and outdoor recreationists, has announced the acquisition of a new headquarters facility, as well as the addition of employees and retailers nationwide.
DTG2Go Acquires SSI Digital Print Services
Delta Apparel Inc. announced that DTG2Go LLC, the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, has acquired substantially all of the assets of Silk Screen Ink Ltd. d/b/a SSI Digital Print Services, a leading provider of digital print services, for $12 million.

Rapha And EF Education Announced New Partnership
Rapha announced a partnership with EF Pro Cycling that marks the cycling brand’s return to men’s WorldTour professional cycling after a two-year hiatus.
Polygiene Makes New Hires
Polygiene, the provider of “stays fresh” technology, said Rebecka Harvyl joined the office in Sweden as the new marketing manager, and Bobby Howell will come on as the commercial director of North America, located in Vancouver, Canada.

How To Navigate The Trade War
Companies that are subject to new tariffs on Chinese-made products might be able to mitigate some or all of the financial impact, according to David Cohen, a Washington, DC-based international trade lawyer, who spoke at the recent SFIA Industry Leaders Summit. “You’re not sitting ducks. There are ways, there are countermeasures, that companies can take.”

Community Engagement Pays Off
Whether its coaches for BSN Sports, runners for Fleet Feet or the local Latino community for WSS, the benefits of engaging communities was spelled out loudly at a session featuring a number of retailers at the SFIA’s recent Industry Leaders Summit in Denver. The challenges in driving consistent engagement were also heard.
Dick’s Sporting Goods Announces Grand Opening Of Four Stores In October
Dick’s Sporting Goods will be opening two new Dick’s Sporting Goods and two new Golf Galaxy stores in October. Dick’s will now have 733 Dick’s Sporting Goods stores and 96 Golf Galaxy stores nationwide in 47 states.
RYU Apparel Announces Upgrade To OTCQB Marketplace
RYU Apparel Inc. announced that commencing October 8 the company’s common shares will be listed for trading on the OTCQB Marketplace under the trading symbol OTCQB: RYPPF.