SGB Update Footwear

Brooks Hires VP of Apparel and Accessories 

Brooks Running hired Gabriel Rodriguez as VP of apparel and accessories. Most recently, Rodriguez was the director of run apparel and competitive train/Curry and basketball at Under Armour.

SFIA Re-Elects Ram as Chair; Adds Three New Board Members

SFIA re-elected Jonathan Ram, CEO of Clarks, Inc., as chairman of the Board of Directors for the 2024 term. Isabel Coscia, SVP of marketing at Technogym, Ryan Cruthirds, chief digital commerce and brand development officer at Implus LLC and Koichiro Kodama, president and CEO for Asics North America, were newly elected to the SFIA Board,

The Buckle’s Comps Decline 6 Percent In December

The Buckle, Inc. announced that comparable store net sales for the 5-week period ended December 30 decreased 5.8 percent versus the year-ago period. Net sales decreased 5.0 percent to $203.8 million from $214.5 million a year ago.

Academy Sports’ Former President Lands at Groundworks

Groundworks, the foundation and water management solutions company, hired Michael Mullican as CFO. Last October, Mullican stepped down from Academy Sports as president and CFO to pursue personal and professional opportunities.

UK’s SportsShoes.com Inks Global Marketing Partnership with Parkrun

The UK-based online running shoe, clothing and outdoor gear retailer said in a release it is now exclusively Parkrun’s official retail partner in the UK, while also supporting the global Parkrun community with procurement and distribution of its range of merchandise.

K-Swiss Appoints VP of Lifestyle

K-Swiss hired athletics footwear veteran Andrew Richard as VP of lifestyle, responsible for leading lifestyle sales for the Americas region, including the wholesale sales team and K-Swiss distributors. 

Costco Store in Virginia to Unionize

At the Costco store in Norfolk, VA, employees voted overwhelmingly to join the Teamsters, the largest union in America, marking the first “victory” for workers at a Costco location in two decades.

Skechers Opens Distribution Facility In India

Skechers opened a 600,000-square-foot distribution center in Mumbai, India, to support the company’s expansion into the country. The building in the Lodha Industrial and Logistics Park in Kalyan is designed to streamline supply chain operations and can ship up to 60,000 SKUs daily.

Lands’ End Secures New Term Loan

Lands’ End, Inc. entered into a new term loan of $260 million. The company used the proceeds to refinance its existing term loan ahead of maturity in September 2025.

Golf Rounds Played Jump In November

Golf Datatech reported that U.S. golf rounds played rose 8.2 percent year-over-year in November, rebounding from a slight decline in October.

Report: Merchandise Returns Reach 14.5 Percent in 2023

According to the report released by the National Retail Federation and Appriss Retail, for every $1 billion in sales, the average retailer reportedly incurs $145 million in merchandise returns. Online sales do see a higher return rate, at 17.6 percent.

Happy Holidays From SGB Media

In observance of the Christmas holiday, SGB Media is taking time to be with family and will not publish the SGB Updates on December 25. Publishing will resume on December 26 with one Update newsletter daily through December 29. 

Nike to Undergo Layoffs, Cost-Cutting Amid Weakening Sales Outlook

Nike, Inc. reported earnings in its fiscal second quarter ended November 30 topped analyst expectations but also announced a  program to cut costs by about $2 billion over the next three years, including through layoffs, as it sees a “softer” sales outlook for its fiscal second half.