SGB Executive Outdoor

Deckers Shares Pop On Acquisition Talk

Shares of Deckers Outdoor Corp. rose $1.81, or 3.1 percent, on Wednesday to $60.55 after it reported it was exploring a sale. The move comes as activist investors had pushed for a sale.

Academy Can’t Sidestep Industry Pressures

Unable to shrug off the many challenges facing the sporting goods channel, Academy Sports + Outdoors’ same-store sales slid in the low-single-digit range and management-adjusted EBITDA dropped 23 percent in 2016.

Sports Direct Breaks Into U.S. Retailing

Sports Direct said the Eastern Outfitters acquisition will provide Sports Direct “with a footprint in U.S. bricks-and-mortar retail and a platform from which to grow U.S. on-line sales.”

Is Casual Participation Growth More Important Than Core Growth?

Among the sports seeing healthier gains in core versus casual participants were a number of fitness-oriented activities, including yoga, cross training, bodyweight exercise & bodyweight accessory-assisted training, weight/resistance machines, treadmill and kettlebells. Others seeing higher growth in core versus casual participation included adventure racing, field hockey, volleyball (grass), target shooting (rifle) and mixed martial arts for competition.

Omega Sports Sold To Former Fresh Market CEO

Phil Bowman, Omega Sports’ president, told SGB, “It was a perfect situation for someone to come in and still grow our company, protect our culture and carry on the Omega tradition.”

Timberland Looks To Diversify To Grow

Timberland plans to aggressively push further into women’s footwear, casual footwear overall and men’s apparel to jumpstart growth in the years ahead. Other key growth priorities included direct-to-consumer and China.

The North Face To Ramp Up Segmentation Efforts

Arne Arens, general manager, Americas, The North Face, told the investment community, “Through these segmentation efforts, we will build a differentiated consumer experience across channels and across tiers, maximizing revenues but also assuring a premium positioning across the entire spectrum of distribution.”

How Does Emerald Expositions Make Money?

Emerald Expositions Events Inc.’s initial public offering reveals that its collection of sports-related trade shows, including Outdoor Retailer, Surf Expo and Interbike, are growing at a steady double-digit rate with healthy booth renewal rates. But particularly impressive is its overall robust profit margins and cash flow conversion.

VF Looks To Jumpstart Acquisitions

“History has shown and we continue to believe that M&A is our highest and best use of capital,” said Scott Roe CFO and VP, at the company’s annual Investor Day. “And it remains our first priority.”