American Outdoor Brands Names Chief Product Officer
The company promoted James Tayon to chief product officer. Tayon will continue to lead the company’s strategic product direction, including product innovation, design, development, and marketing.
Yeti Expands Board of Directors with Two New Additions
Rob Katz has acted as the executive chairperson of the Board at Vail Resorts, Inc. since 2021 after serving as CEO from 2006 to 2021. Beth Axelrod reportedly brings over 20 years of strategic human resources leadership and management development expertise to the Yeti Board.
Watershed Drybags Introduces New Material and Colors For 2024
Watershed Drybags introduced a new material, Kryptothane Plus, on all its recreational drybags and three new colors—safety orange, royal purple and smoke green.
Nordstrom Rack To Add Another Houston Location in Fall 2024
The store will occupy 34,000 square feet in the Meyerland Plaza, among Texas’s Top 5 most visited open-air shopping centers. The retailer operates eight Nordstrom stores and 23 Nordstrom Rack stores in the state.
Compass Diversified Receives $75.2 Million Equity Investment
The owner of Velocity Outdoor, BOA, Primaloft, 5.11, and other active lifestyle brands, reported that it had completed a private placement of approximately 3.6 million of its common shares to a mutual fund managed by Allspring Global Investments to raise $75.2 million.
EXEC: Report Finds Troubling Core Participation Trend in Team Sports
SFIA’s recently released U.S. Trends In Team Sports Report noted that participation in 16 of 23 team sports tracked by the Association has not returned to pre-pandemic levels, and only one sport, soccer, showed Core Participation gains in the 2019-2022 period. However, the SFIA report offered more encouraging findings in team sports trends.
E-Bike Company EBliss Global Appoints New President
EBliss Global hired Dave Boyle, an auto industry veteran with over thirty years of experience, to help bring the company’s Always Brand e-bikes to auto dealers. He will also serve as company president.
U.S. Consumer Confidence Rises to 5-Month High in December
The Conference Board reported that its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 110.7 million in December, up from a downwardly revised 101.0 in November in an indication that concerns about a recession in the U.S. are lessening. The Index improved for the third consecutive month, reaching its highest level since July.
Study: Gen Z and Boomers Most Likely to Shop In-Store
ICSC wrote that while Gen Z grew up with digital and mobile technology, their penchant for in-store shopping at times exceeds that of the generations that grew up shopping in physical stores.
Authentic Partners with Former Boardriders Execs to Manage Japan, Taiwan
BRJ Group, led by Sammy Yoo, a 13-year veteran of the Boardriders’ portfolio, will operate business in Japan and Taiwan, which includes the Quiksilver, Billabong, Roxy, RVCA, DC Shoes, Element and Von Zipper brands.
Electric Scooter Company Bird Lands in Bankruptcy Court
Electric vehicle company Bird Global filed for bankruptcy with an agreement to sell some of its assets to its existing lenders.
Liberated Brands Gets Nod from Authentic to Manage Boardriders Brands Down Under
Authentic expanded its partnership with Liberated Brands to build the Quiksilver, Billabong, Roxy, RVCA, DC Shoes, Element, VonZipper, Honolua, and other businesses in Australia, New Zealand, Thailand, and Indonesia.
Kohl’s Expands Board of Directors to 13 Members with Latest Appointment
Wendy C. Arlin, who, most recently, was the CFO for Bath & Body Works, Inc., reportedly brings more than three decades of experience in corporate finance, financial reporting, oversight and accounting, with deep expertise in the consumer industry.
Woolrich Appoints Creative Director, Woolrich Black Label
Woolrich named Todd Snyder, founder of Todd Snyder New York, as creative director of its new Woolrich Black Label collection.
Winnebago May See Tough Year Ahead as Fiscal Q1 Backlogs Fall 54 Percent
A 20 percent decline in revenues for the fiscal first quarter ended November 25 was said to be primarily driven by lower unit sales related to market conditions, product mix, and higher discounts and allowances compared to the prior-year quarter, partially offset by carryover price increases related to higher motorized chassis costs.
