Rhone, the men’s activewear and lifestyle brand, formed a new consortium of investors, including Blackstone executive and ex-football star Tim Tebow, to buy out the approximately 29 percent stake in the company owned by private equity firm L Catterton.
Category: Sports/Fitness

EXEC: Thule’s Profits Bounce Back in Third Quarter
Thule Group reported a strong recovery in earnings in the third quarter as sales rose 8.0 percent. Sales in the North American region decreased 15 percent on a currency-neutral basis.

New Balance Appoints Director, Global Apparel Planning
New Balance promoted Stephen Butch to director of global apparel planning, effective immediately. He has worked for New Balance since 1995, starting as a sales associate in the brand’s Boston factory outlet store.

Report: Golf Apparel Sales Decline for Third Straight Month in September
Galk Datatech is reporting that golf apparel sales were down in on-and off-course specialty stores for the third consecutive month in September, falling 3.7 percent after declining 3.5 percent in August and a 3.6 percent decrease in July.

EXEC: Deckers Delivers Blowout Q2 as Hoka Takes Lead in U.S. Run Specialty
Deckers Brands hiked its annual guidance as results for its fiscal second quarter ended September 30 were boosted by an robust recovery at Ugg. However, Hoka’s momentum showed no signs of slowing down with Deckers’s officials telling analysts the brand has become the leading footwear seller in the U.S.-run specialty channel.

Fleet Feet Acquires Ultra Running Company
Fleet Feet expands its retail footprint further with the acquisition of Charlotte, NC-based Ultra Running Company. The store was rebranded to Fleet Feet Charlotte–Myers Park.
Martha Headwear Adds Reps for Three More U.S. Sales Territories
Byron Seegers is now responsible for the Pacific Northwest region, Chris Baylinson was tapped to cover the North Atlantic region and Ashley White is now handling retailers in Florida for Martha Headwear.

Under Armour’s Curry Brand Signs First NBA Athlete
Under Armour Inc. announced that Sacramento Kings point guard, De’Aaron Fox, has signed as the first signature athlete with its Curry Brand under a multi-year partnership.
Deckers Raises Guidance On Hoka and Ugg Momentum, To Divest Sanuk
Powered by healthy double-digit growth from both Ugg and Hoka, Deckers Brands reported earnings jumped 75.9 percent in its fiscal second quarter ended September 30 on a sales jump of 24.7 percent while hiking its outlook for the fiscal year.

Linksoul Releases Kids Collection
Linksoul, the golf gear and apparel manufacturer, launched into kidswear with its Linksoul Kids Capsule Collection.

On Brand Opens Miami Store
Swiss-running brand On opened a store in Miami, marking the company’s continued retail expansion and fifth store in the U.S.

EXEC: Li Ning Sees Q3 China Retail Sales Comp Down Mid-Singles
In terms of channels, the retail channel registered a mid-single-digit increase and the wholesale channel registered a low-teens decline; while its e-commerce virtual stores business registered a low-single-digit decline on a year-over-year basis.

Mips Sales Pain Still Persists in Bike Helmets in Q3
Swedish helmet technology provider Mips saw sales declines moderate a bit in the third quarter from the 51 percent decline experienced in the second quarter, but the company acknowledged it was another soft quarter with the impact of inventory adjustments still being felt in the bike sub-category.

Escalade’s Q3 Profits Jump on Improved Margins
Escalade ,Inc. reported third-quarter profits climbed 43.3 percent in the third quarter as strong improvement in gross margins. Sales were down 2.1 percent as healthy demand for basketball and pickleball offset weakness in other categories. Excluding the benefit of a calendar change, sales declined 11.6 percent.

Super Retail Group Comps Up 2 Percent for 16-Week YTD Period
The Australia-based parent of the Rebel Sports, BCF Outdoor and Macpac outdoor retail chains, provided an update on its year-to-date performance at its annual general meeting on October 25 as it cycles against big increases last year.