John Embree will be joining Prince Sports, Inc. as its new president of Prince Americas. John is a 17-year veteran of Wilson Sporting Goods, where he rose to be the VP and General Manager of their global racquet sports division before leaving in 2003.
For the past few years, Embree has been a part owner of Balle de Match, a specialty apparel brand. His decision to leave that opportunity and to join Prince was triggered by the recent retirement announcement of Prince's Doug Fonte.
“Adding John's leadership to our already strong team and great brand will accelerate our drive to 'take the racquet sports hill',” said chairman and CEO of Prince Sports, Inc. George Napier. “I am confident the vast majority of the USA dealer community will be thrilled when this news spreads and our entire team will benefit from John's sharp mind and relentless passion and energy.”
According to Embree, “The last thing I was thinking of doing, until I heard of Doug's retirement, was leaving Balle de Match. But the opportunity to join Prince in such an important capacity was too good to pass up. Prince is the perfect place for me to make a positive impact. It is a clean, strong global brand, with an exceptional team, great products and I can't think of a better fit in terms of matching my enthusiasm, energy and skill set with its momentum and credibility.”
Embree has not yet finalized his start date with Prince though he is targeting to join the company in mid-May. John will relocate from Chicago to the New Jersey area with his family.
