The deal making heated up last week in the outdoor industry as Horny Toad swooped in to pluck talent and trademarks from the remains of nascent lifestyle apparel maker Nau Inc.; Finnish brand Karhu was acquired by its U.S. footwear licensee; and Dorel Industries added a parts and accessories brand to its growing cycling empire.
Horny Toad acquired the Nau trademark, its URL and all intellectual property, such as product designs. In addition the company aquired the physical assets of Naus design offices for an undisclosed sum. Two months ago, Nau announced it was winding down operations because it could not raise any more money after burning through $34 million in cash in its first year. The high profile start-up used the money to launch a line of sustainable clothing and sell it directly to consumers through its own website and stores.
When Horny Toads CEO Gordon Seabury saw Naus 2009 line of apparel and learned its store had been picked clean within 24 hours of the companys May 2 closing announcement, he felt compelled to move.
“Between product in the pipeline and consumer response, I really thought that there was something there,” Seabury said. “Our goal is to take the product philosophy and brand story the business was built on and bring it to life in a more fiscally sustainable model. The only thing we are changing is the scale and the focus on a single retail channel versus wholesale.”
Seabury is already working with outdoor and snowsports specialty retailers to grant exclusive dealerships for Naus fall 2008 line.
In the Karhu deal, U.S. licensees Huub Valkenburg and Jay Duke purchased global trademark rights to the Karhu brand from Karhu Sporting Goods Oy (KSG) of Finland. KSG, which will be renamed, will retain rights to the brand in Scandinavia and retain global licensing rights for Karhu branded Nordic skis. K2 retains the global license for Karhu alpine skis.
In an interview with SEW, Valkenburg and Duke said their first priority is to re-establish Karhu as a performance running shoe brand in both Europe and the United States. The brand retreated from the European footwear market after KGB bought it in 1996 and has been absent from the U.S. footwear market for 20 years, Valkenburg said.
Valkenburg bought the license to market Karhu footwear in the U.S. two years ago. He focused on selling Karhu running shoes through specialty running stores in New York, Chicago and Texas. Ultimately, the partners want to build a global apparel and footwear brand around the Karhu story of working with the bodys natural movements.
The final deal of the week came when Canadas Dorel Industries Ltd. said its Pacific Cycle division acquired the assets of PTI Sports for $28.1 million. A U.S. designer, manufacturer and distributor of bicycle parts, helmets and other accessories, PTI reported EBIDTA of $5 million on sales of $65 million in 2001. Dorel said PTI Sports would begin contributing profits immediately.
PTI Sports will provide Pacific Cycle with more products to sell to its existing mass merchant customers, which include Dicks, Wal-Mart and warehouse clubs. The company has licensed the Schwinn and Mongoose names from Pacific Cycle since 2002 and also licenses Disney, Nickelodeon, Mattel, Master Lock and other brands. Dorel said PTI is the number two supplier of bicycle helmets in North America.
