Rossignol, the snow, ski and mountain brand formerly owned by Quiksilver, announced its partnership with IMG Worldwide for the licensing of its brand in a select number of carefully managed categories.
Under the leadership of CEO Bruno Cercley, the “new” Rossignol will be re-focusing on its historic technical and commercial leadership in skis and related hard goods equipment. Other categories where Rossignol has technical knowhow, brand legitimacy and product and distribution synergies, but which it does not need to manufacture itself, will be exploited via carefully managed licensing partnerships. Last week the company announced it had granted the first of those licenses, which was for the skiwear apparel category, to Look Cycle.
Said Cercley, “A selective licensing strategy will allow us to maximize our resources in the areas we know best and where our technical value-added can be most effectively deployed directly – while at the same time leveraging our brand and expertise in various product segments where Rossignol clearly has an important role to play. IMG is clearly the leading agency handling licensing at this sort of level and the perfect solution for us.”
Bruno Maglione, IMG Executive Vice President and Co-Managing Director of IMG Licensing Worldwide, added, “It is a privilege to be handling an important part of the new strategy of this iconic 100-year-old winter sports brand. We are impressed by Bruno Cercley’s vision for the future development of Rossignol and his total commitment to its roots in performance and technical leadership. With the next Winter Olympic games around the corner, audiences will be reminded of Rossignol’s brand dominance and the attractiveness to partner with it in appropriate ancillary categories.”
Rossingol and IMG will be seeking licensing partnerships in a number of specific segments including footwear, eyewear, sports bags and other relevant accessories.
