SGB Update Outdoor

REI to Open Store in Fresno

Recreational Equipment, Inc. plans to open a store at The Shops at River Park in Fresno, Calif., in the spring of 2007. The two-story 26,000 square-foot store at North Blackstone and East Nees avenues off Route 41 will employ about 55 full- and part-time

ISPO China Summer Pushed Back to 2007

ispo china summer will not be taking place on 20 – 23 August 2006 as planned but is to start in summer 2007 in Shanghai. In many intensive talks with trade and industry organisations such as the CORA Chinese Outdoor Retail Association, the summer platform

But Hurts Black’s Leisure’s U.K. Outdoor Sales…

At its Annual General Meeting, U.K.’s largest outdoor retailer, Blacks Leisure, said that total Group sales for the first 20 weeks of the fiscal year increased 2.6%, but comp sales fell 1.0%. The company stated that the World Cup has had a significant neg

New Apparel Brands Hit Market…

Two companies from opposite ends of the sporting goods spectrum — skate and tennis–launched forays into the apparel realm last week. In the action sports sector, Sole Technology launched Altamont Apparel Ltd., which is set to hit select stores globally

Nautilus Acquires Bob Rodgers Patent Portfolio…

Nautilus, Inc. has acquired the patent portfolio of fitness inventor Bob Rodgers, who is regarded as one of the top inventors, especially surrounding elliptical cardiovascular trainers. The patent portfolio contains more than 30 individual patents surroun

InSport Restructures After Vital Apparel Acquisition…

Local papers are reporting that InSport International plans to lay off 12 people. The layoffs come after the company was acquired by Vital Apparel last November and accounts for most of InSport's staff. Vital will shift distribution and several other

NRF: Expect a Big BTS Season This Year…

According to the National Retail Federation’s 2006 Back-to-School Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey, conducted by BIGresearch, families with school-aged children will be spending more on back-to-school shopping this year than last, with the average f

Play-It-Again Parent Improves Q2 Bottom Line…

Winmark Corporation posted net income for the second quarter of $650,400, or 11 cents per share diluted, compared to net income of $542,600, or 8 cents per share diluted, in 2005. Net revenues from merchandise sales were down 53.9% to $790,000 from $1.7 m

Report: adidas Wins Out in World Cup Finals Marketing…

Nielsen Sports reports that adidas had the most overall brand exposure during the 2006 World Cup final between Italy and France, garnering over 1.2 billion impressions among adults 25 to 54. Nearly 30% of the exposures to the brand were generated from its

RECALL: Lotus Designs Mildwater PFD

Lotus Designs, Inc. is recalling its Mildwater PFD. This style is also sold as the Fishing PFD and Patagonia Fishing Vest. The recall is issued due to the possibility that Mildwater PFDs may not comply with the 15.5 pounds of buoyancy as outlined in Under

RECALL: Dive Computers

Suunto Oy and the CPSC are recalling about 3,900 Suunto D9 and D6 Model Wristop Dive Computers. These dive computers could incorrectly track dive time, which could cause incorrect calculation of decompression requirements. This could lead to decompression

Eagle Nice Posts 15% FY Revenue Gain; Income Slips…

For the full fiscal year, revenue for the Eagle Nice group increased from HK$451.4 million ($57.9 mm) to approximately HK$519.3 million ($66.9 mm), an increase of approximately 15%. The gross profit margin of the group was approximately 24% for the year,

Utility Inc. Forms New Branding Division

Utility Inc., a retail fixturing group based in the SODO district of Seattle, WA, has created a new division: Dept. of Energy a.k.a. D.O.E.; a small coalition of graphic designers focused on branding, product development, fashion and the general aesthetic

FINL Elects Class II Directors

The shareholders of The Finish Line, Inc. elected three Class II directors, Larry J. Sablosky, Bill Kirkendall and William P. Carmichael, to serve on the Board of Directors until the 2009 Annual Meeting. The shareholders also approved the selection of Ern

Outdoor Coalition Again Drives VF Corp. Gains…

VF Corporation reported their 11th consecutive quarter of record sales and earnings results. Revenues rose 8% in the second quarter to $1.57 billion, compared with $1.45 billion in 2005. This increase was fueled by organic growth across VF’s different co