SGB Update

LaCrosse Benefits From Strategic Shift…

LaCrosse Footwear, Inc. was able to eke out a slight profit for the second quarter compared to a loss of $3.8 million fro the year-ago period. Consolidated net sales decreased 6.9% to $18.6 million from $20.0 million in the second quarter of 2002…

Burma Workers Want U.S. to Drop Ban…

After the Myanmar regime placed Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to place sanctions on any imports from Myanmar, formerly known as Burma.

Cancels Hurt Saucony Q2 Sales Results…

Saucony relied on a 500 basis point improvement in gross margin to post a 44% improvement in net income and a 40% increase in diluted EPS in the second quarter. However, the improved bottom line masked issues on the top line as sales for the quarter decr

Big 5 Disappoints Street, But Rolls On…

Shares of Big 5 Sporting Goods fell 11.3% for the week to close at $13.70 on Friday after the retailer fell short of Wall Street expectations for the second quarter. Big 5 posted EPS of 28 cents a share for the second quarter, 2 cents lower than analysts

Fools Love The Sportsman Guide…

The Motley Fool, an Web-based investor site, is now calling The Sportsman's Guide a “lean, mean moneymaking machine” after the company posted its latest positive results for the second quarter ended June 30th, beating the street estimates by 2 cents

Nautilus Hopes Court Relief Helps…

The Nautilus Group may have just been thrown a much-needed life preserver as it continues its downward spiral amid higher ad costs and stiff competition. A U.S. District Court in Washington State last week ruled in favor of the maker of the Bowflex machi

Callaway to Net $1mm+ in “Big” Case…

Callaway has settled with another group of defendants in the “Big Easy” knock-off scam. The action came as the result of a court-ordered seizure of the suspected product from Newport Golf in Anaheim, CA in May 2002 that netted 28,000 knockoff club heads

Specialty Quick Hits

Schoeller Textiles has changed the name of its ComforTemp; Chip Coe added “President” to his Smartwool title; Dahon bicycles sold a record number of folding bicycles so far this year; Tender Corporation and Adventure Medical Kits have gone one step beyond

Gart and Sports Authority Complete Merger

Gart Sports Company and The Sports Authority, Inc. have completed their merger of equals. In separate meetings held this morning in Denver, CO and Fort Lauderdale, FL, shareholders of both companies approved the previously announced transaction. The marke

Close-Outs Dominate the Action at WSA…

We just knew what kind of show WSA was going to be when the first people we ran into in the aisle was an executive team from one of the country’s largest family footwear chains and they had their CFO with them — and he brought his calculator with him…

Puma Still Rocking Along in Q2…

While the Puma booth at WSA wasn’t as packed as past shows, the folks at the trend-setting brand had plenty to be pleased about as the company posted yet another stellar quarter in Q2. In currency-neutral terms, consolidated group sales increased to 56.

MLB Names New Partners in New Long-Term Exclusive Licensing Deals

Major League Baseball has inked new five-year licensing agreements for the global rights to produce official Major League Baseball adult apparel and headwear. The combined value of the agreements guarantees Major League Baseball and the Clubs more than $5

Fleet Feet Names Brooks Top Footwear Vendor

Brooks Sports Inc. has been chosen as the Fleet Feet Footwear Vendor of the Year for the second year in a row. Brooks was previously named Fleet Feet Apparel Vendor of the Year in 1999, 2000 and 2001…

Luxotica Ups the Down Under Pressure on OPSM

Luxottica Group announced its final offer to purchase OPSM Group. The offer price of A$3.90 per OPSM Group share is final and will not be increased. The closing date for the offer will be extended by one week and is now scheduled to expire at 7:00 p.m. (S