SGB Executive Apparel

EXEC: Saucony Posts 60 Percent Retail Growth in China
The MS (China) Sports Company Limited, a direct wholly-owned subsidiary of Xtep International Holdings Limited, operates under licensing and royalty agreements for the Merrell and Saucony brands and subsidiaries in China.

EXEC: KMD Saw Holiday Turnaround for Rip Curl; DTC Gives Lift to All Brands
The company said in its preliminary report that the total sales result was driven by improving trends in the direct-to-consumer channel for all brands. Wholesale sales have taken longer to recover and continue to decline year-over-year.

EXEC: Brendan Hoffman Takes Helm at Vince Holding Corp. Through New Venture
The new venture, P180, was Co-Founded by Christine Hunsicker, founder and CEO of CaaStle, Inc., and Brendan Hoffman, the former CEO of Wolverine Worldwide, Vince, Bon Ton, Lord & Taylor, and other luxury retail brands.

EXEC: Puma SE Shares Fall Over 20 Percent on Analyst and Investor Concerns
Puma SE shares opened 16 percent lower in Europe on Thursday morning, January 23, after the company’s pre-announcement of 2024 fourth quarter and full-year results caused a stir overnight.

EXEC: ISPO Group Shuffles Show Leadership After Tobias Gröber Sets Departure
The ISPO Group expects limited disruption as Exhibition Director Lena Haushofer and her team assume Gröber’s responsibilities, with Christoph Rapp, head of Sales and Marketing, and Saskia Rettenbacher, head of Event Management.

EXEC: Puma Comes Up Short on 2024 Bottom Line; Sets Cost-Cutting Program
For the foruth quarter, Puma reported that preliminary sales increased 15.5 percent on a reported basis to €2.29 billion. The company saw sales growth of 9.8 percent on a currency-adjusted (ca) basis for the quarter.

EXEC: REI Names Mary Beth Laughton as Next CEO as Eric Artz Plans Exit
Laughton, a former REI Board Director and seasoned retail leader, will join REI as president on February 3, 2025, before assuming full CEO responsibilities on March 31.

EXEC: VF Corp. Confirms New Global Cuts; Analysts React to ICR Presentation
The parent company of The North Face, Vans, Timberland, Jansport and Dickies, among other outdoor and street lifestyle brands, continues to take action against the goals set out in its Reinvent turnaround plan.

EXEC: Adidas Preliminary 2024 Report Reveals Double-Digit Growth to €23.7B
In euro terms, the company’s revenues grew 24 percent to €5.97 billion in the fourth quarter, or 19 percent in currency-neutral terms versus Q4 2023. Excluding Yeezy for both years, currency-neutral revenues increased 13 percent.

EXEC: Authentic Taps Sports Casuals as Reebok Golf Apparel Partner
With SCI as Reebok’s apparel partner, the brand now has a head-to-toe softgoods offering, with Reebok Design Group, the brand’s global hub for design, development and innovation, handling the creation and distribution of golf footwear.

EXEC: New Balance Rides Consumer Energy and Retailer Support to Reach $7.8B in 2024
Company CEO Joe Preston, speaking at the NRF Big Show, said sales at the 118-year-old company are poised to grow another 20 percent in 2025 after increasing 20 percent to $7.8 billion in 2024.

EXEC: Perfect Moment Names Two Additional European Sales Agencies
New Look Fashion Deal will manage Perfect Moment’s wholesale distribution in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg (Benelux) and Bernd Schürmann will focus on Germany, Austria and Switzerland (DACH region).

EXEC: 361 Degrees Owned-Retail Growth Accelerates in Q4 as E-Commerce Jumps
361 Degrees International, Ltd. reported brick-and-mortar retail sales of 361º core-branded product increased ~ 10 percent year-over-year for the fourth quarter of 2024. E-commerce product recorded sales growth of ~ 30 percent to 35 percent.

EXEC: JD Sports Fashion Reports 3.4 Percent Organic Sales Growth for Holiday
On a year-to-date (YTD) basis through January 4, comp sales revenue was flat, and the company said it expects full-year comp sales revenue to be at a similar level as the YTD trend.

EXEC: JCPenney Merges with Sparc Group to Form Catalyst Brands
The combined Catalyst Brands organization is a joint venture formed in an all-equity transaction between JCPenney and the Sparc Group, with shareholders Simon Property Group, Brookfield Corporation, Authentic Brands Group, and Shein.