The Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) announced several new speakers for the inaugural SFIA Industry Leaders Summit to be held in Baltimore, MD on Sept. 25-26, 2013. Speakers include Kevin Plank, the NBA’s Sal LaRocca, MLB’s Tim Brosna and Robert W. Baird’s Joe Pellegrini.

The event will feature sessions ranging from forecasting and understanding domestic and global economic trends, emerging market analysis and the future of sourcing to forecasting the merger and acquisition environment and the convergence of technology in sports.
        
Committed speakers for the 2013 SFIA Industry Leaders Summit include:
•    Ted Leonsis, Founder, Chairman and CEO – Monumental Sports & Entertainment
o    Owns and operates the Washington Capitals (NHL), Washington Wizards (NBA), Washington Mystics (WNBA) and Verizon Center in downtown Washington, D.C.
o    Former President, AOL and current co-CEO, Groupon
•    Kevin Plank, Founder and CEO – Under Armour
•    Sal LaRocca, Executive Vice President of Global Merchandising-National Basketball Association
•    Tim Brosnan, Executive Vice President, Business-Major League Baseball
•    Scott Baxter, Group President – VF Corporation
•    Hugo Malan, President, Fitness, Sporting Goods and Toys – Sears Holdings
•    Jeffrey Rosensweig, Director of Global Perspectives – Emory University
o    Global and U.S. Economics Forecaster and Expert on Global Investing and Business Strategy
o    Author of Winning the Global Game: A Strategy for Linking People and Profits
•    Auret van Heerden, CEO – Fair Labor Association
•    Joe Pellegrini, Co-Head Consumer & Retailer Group – Robert W. Baird & Co.
o    Expert on capital markets and Mergers & Acquisitions advisory services in the Consumer sector, with particular focus in retail, branded apparel, outdoor, fitness and sporting good products and performance footwear segments.
•    Robert Reiss, Host of The CEO Show, Author of The Transformative CEO and Forbes Columnist

The summit will appeal to executives who are looking for a compact, dynamic learning and networking event that is designed to support their business but wont take them away from their operations for an extended period of time. This 36-hour event is designed to provide a unique opportunity for some of the most highly regarded executives in the sports and fitness industry to find solutions to what keeps them up at night while also networking with customers, partners and peers.

We are committed to delivering an Industry Leaders Summit that is both compelling and forward-thinking, said Tom Cove, SFIA President and CEO. This agenda and our dynamic group of speakers are the foundation for delivering an outstanding learning and networking experience for our attendees.

From the very beginning, our first priority was to determine what subject matter is most important to sports and fitness executives, said Bob Puccini (President, Mizuno USA), SFIAs Chairman of the Board. Only after we established our agenda topics did we identify the most qualified experts to speak on those subjects. We are confident that we have established an agenda that delivers a first class combination of content and expertise that will appeal to a broad range of industry executives.

There are many challenges facing our sports and fitness industry such as declining participation and obesity, said Robert Parish (President and CEO, Jarden Team Sports). This conference will provide a forum for the industrys most influential leaders to come together to really make a difference in peoples lives. Together, we can turn these challenges into opportunities for long term growth and health.

This event has everything Im looking for in a conference…great content, dynamic speakers and opportunities to network with my peers, said Sarah Fields (President, Century, LLC). Not only will I personally benefit from attending this event, but by extension, the entire Century team will benefit.

For more information on the 2013 Industry Leaders Summit or to register, visit www.sfia.org/ils.