The Energy Comes Roaring Back in Footwear…
After comparing last February’s WSA show with a ghost town and characterizing the August event as more of a close-out inventory reverse auction than a trade show, we were pleasantly surprised to see the great energy coming from upbeat retailers and reinvi
Footstar Hints at BK to Jettison Debt…
Footstar’s sudden announcement last week that they may file for bankruptcy protection if they couldn’t sell off assets and/or get new financing had everyone scrambling on Thursday at the show. While we didn’t find any vendors that would readily admit tha
Mossimo Delays the Inevitable…
In June of last year, the Los Angeles Superior Court ruled that the finder's agreement between Cherokee Inc. and Mossimo Inc. was valid, ruling that Mossimomust pay Cherokee 15% of all monies received by MOSS from Target Stores pursuant to Mossimo�
Big 5 Sees a “Wonderful” Start in 2004…
Big 5 Sporting Goods is reportedly off to another good year after reporting its eighth straight year of comp store sales increase and its 32nd consecutive quarterly gain. Management characterized the start to 2004 as “wonderful” due to “favorable weather
Russell Sees Nice Upside from Acquisitions; Base Business Continues Sharp Decline…
Russell Corporation’s Russell Athletic division looked to acquisitions once again to post any type of growth for the fourth quarter of 2003. Sales for the division without the Spalding and Bike Athletic acquisitions last year would have been down about 1
Oakley Gets Q4 Sunglass Spike; Looks to International and Retail for 2003 Gains…
Oakley saw its U.S. wholesale business, led by growth in Sunglass sales, rebound in the fourth quarter after trending lower for much of the year. Full year 2003 numbers appear to reflect a trend that sees Oakley relying more on its owned-retail sale to g
VF Corp Again Taps Outdoor for Gains…
VF Corporation has identified the outdoor category as a key growth driver for the corporation and plans to “aggressively pursue growth” in the division through acquisitions as well as organic internal growth. Full year 2003 sales in the company's Ou
Dick’s Raise Guidance; Splits Shares…
Dick's Sporting Goods is again raising expectations for itself as well as the industry after reporting that total sales for the fiscal fourth quarter ended January 31 increased 20% to $474.4 million from with $395.2 million in the year-ago period. Co
Sport Supply Gets Lift from Asset Sales…
The November sale of the company’s Athletic Training Equipment Company division to Wilson Team Sports has enabled Sport Supply Group to post a net gain in earnings for its fiscal third quarter ended December 26.
SIA SnowSports Retail Audit Reveals Deeper Price Deflation at Specialty…
According to the preliminary SIA Retail Audit for the first five months of the 2003/2004 winter season, total sales for the winter sports market increased by 1.5% to $1.35 billion compared to $1.33 billion in 2002. Unit sales were up 4.6%, signaling some
Dynasty Apparel Appoints New VP of Sales
Dynasty Apparel has named Hector Rodriguez as Vice President of Sales. He will oversea all aspects of the team licensed divison. He will also identify new business opportunities that will extend and maximize Dynasty's growth plans. Hector was VP of
SSK Japan Inks Exclusive U.S. Distribution Deal with SKS Sports
SSK Japan has announced a new agreement with SKS Sports America,Inc. providing the company with an exclusive licensing and distribution agreement for the SSK product line in the United States…
Sports Group International Appoints New Search Consultant
Sports Group International, an executive search firm serving recreational products companies and services organizations, announced the appointment of D.J. Kazmierczak as Executive Search Consultant. Kazmierczak will be responsible for serving organization
Schutt Sports in Sponsor Deal with State Association
Schutt Sports and the Illinois High School Association have announced that the “Official Rim of IHSA Basketball” is being manufactured by Schutt. The company is now sponsor of the Schutt Sports Slam Dunk Spectacular competition held in conjunction with t
SGMA: Sports Licensed Products Sales Surging
Sports licensed products retail sales in the U.S. and Canada rose 7% in 2003 over 2002 to reach $12.1 billion. The increase since 2001 has been an impressive 15%. Sales outside the U.S. represented less than 10% of total sales in 1998, but rose to 20% i