West Marine Taps REI Exec As CEO

WMAR named REI Executive Vice President Matthew Hyde as its new president and CEO. Hyde, 49, will succeed Geoff Eisenberg, 59, June 19. Eisenberg announced his plans to resign earlier this year after nearly 40 years at the company, including the last four as CEO.

Hyde’s most recent duties at REI included overseeing the company's more than 120 brick-and-mortar stores, e-Commerce, marketing and real estate operations. Before that, he led the teams that repositioned and successfully grew REI's private label brand. REI’s sales reached $1.8 billion in 2011, up 8.4 percent from 2010 and nearly 30 percent since 2008.

Hyde’s appointment comes as West Marine continues a multi-year turnaround that has hinged in part on opening larger stores than can accommodate an expanded offering of higher margin soft goods for boaters, including private label apparel, an area where REI has excelled. West Marine’s sales of  technical apparel, performance apparel, casual apparel, footwear and apparel accessories, have grown at double digit rates in recent quarters and now account for 7 percent of sales. In the first quarter sales of boating apparel and footwear grew at twice the rate of sales of core products, which include such hardgoods as boats and boat parts, engines and engine parts, electronics and navigation equipment,  fishing and other water sports gear.

“He brings a consistent history of growing sales and profits in the outdoor recreational field,” West Marine Board Chairman and Founder Randy Repass said of Hyde. “His core values, in support of customers and associates, are the same as West Marine's. We are confident his strong skill set and extensive experience in areas that are key to West Marine's future – including merchandising, marketing, retail and e-commerce operations – have prepared him well to provide outstanding leadership and build on the strong platform Geoff and his team have created at West Marine.”