Seattle-based Therm-a-Rest, a leader in premium outdoor camp comfort, welcomed industry veteran Greg Dean to the team as its new brand director.
Category: Outdoor
Rapha President North America Joins Walton Family Civic Organization
Brendan Quirk will be responsible for positioning Northwest Arkansas as a leading region nationwide for the incubation and recruitment of cycling-related brands, an innovator in cycling infrastructure, and a bucket-list destination for bike tourism.
Top Honors Awarded In New England
Based on a voting process that included all the New England winter sales reps, Rich Brachold, owner of Village Ski & Snowboard Shop in Franklin, Massachusetts, earned EORA/NESR’s Winter Retailer of the Year award.
Ruffwear Partners With Locally
Ruffwear, a leader in performance dog gear for outdoor adventure, is now offering a website shopping tool to connect customers with retailers in their area that carry Ruffwear products.
Bearpaw Makes Major Expansion Moves In Europe And China
Bearpaw, the maker of fashion footwear for men, women, and children, has taken another big step towards expanding their presence in Europe and China with the establishment of two new entities.
Starboard Delivers Letter To Newell CEO And Board Of Directors
In a letter to the board of Newell, Starboard Value LP said it plans to nominate three former Jarden executives (Ian G.H. Ashken, Martin E. Franklin and James E. Lillie) and a former long-time Newell Director (Domenico De Sole) to its slate of director candidates to oversee a turnaround of the company.
L.L. Bean Drops Unlimited Returns Policy
L.L. Bean has ended its lifetime-returns policy due to rampant abuse in recent years. The retailer has initiated a new one-year limit on returns.

Aisle Talk, Week of February 5
Top headlines from the active lifestyle industry you may have missed this week.

Columbia Q4 Boosted By Improving U.S. Business
President and CEO Tim Boyle said, “In the fourth quarter, the U.S. wholesale channel played a significant role contributing to our top line beat relative to our October outlook, aided by improved order conversion.”
Newell Brands Confirms Receipt Of Starboard Value’s Director Nominations
Newell Brands confirmed that it has received notice from Starboard Value and Opportunity Master Fund Ltd. of its intention to nominate 10 candidates to stand for election to the Newell Brands Board of Directors at the company’s 2018 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.

Fitness And Outdoor Drive Amer Sports’ Q4 Growth
Amer Sports reported revenues on a currency-neutral basis grew 9.0 percent in the fourth quarter, led by a 14 percent gain by its Fitness segment and an 11 percent climb by its Outdoor segment. The Ball Sports’ segment inched up 1 percent and has been impacted by a “challenging U.S. wholesale market.”

Wolverine Worldwide Provides 2018 Guidance With Strong Growth Investment Plan
Wolverine World Wide Inc. provided its outlook for fiscal year 2018 including its investment plan to drive its new GLOBAL GROWTH AGENDA, along with details on the expected positive impact of U.S. tax reform and its WAY FORWARD transformation. The company also announced certain preliminary financial results for the fiscal year ended December 30, 2017, including special charges recognized in the fourth quarter.

Columbia Sportswear’s Q4 Revenues Climb 8 Percent
Columbia Sportswear reported earnings excluding a massive tax charge and restructuring costs rose 9.2 percent on an 8 percent revenue gain. U.S. net sales increased 8 percent to $492.6 million, reflecting growth in DTC and benefits from a shift in the timing of shipments of Fall 2017 advance wholesale orders from the third quarter to the fourth quarter.
NRF Forecasts Retail Sales Will Increase Between 3.8 and 4.4 Percent In 2018
The National Retail Federation released its 2018 economic forecast, projecting that retail industry sales will grow between 3.8 and 4.4 percent over 2017. Online and other non-store sales, which are included in the overall number, are expected to increase between 10 and 12 percent.

Vista Outdoor’s Q3 Hamstrung By Weak Hunt Business
On a conference call with analysts, Christopher Metz, Vista Outdoor’s CEO since October, said the company made progress in the third quarter generating cash, reducing inventories and driving down costs, but continued weakness in its Shooting Sports continues to erode earnings.