Retail:
+++ Lululemon has opened a 2,800-square-feet store at the Southgate shopping center in the English town of Bath, which will also host weekly yoga and fitness classes
+++ Under Armour is planning to open a new Brand House of 270 square meters in the autumn in the center of Stockholm
+++ E.Leclerc, the French retail cooperative specializing in groceries, is planning to open four or five more Leclerc Sport & Loisirs branches in 2021/22, Sport-guide reports, building up to a total network of 43 stores in France
Distribution:
+++ Accent Group has secured exclusive distribution rights for Herschel products in Australia, effective May 2021 +++
Results:
+++ Reporting lower sales increases for the first quarter than Anta, Li Ning or Xtep, China’s 361 Degrees says that sales by its core brand experienced growth in the high-teens, while 361° Kids was up in the low-twenties
Legal & Institutional:
+++ Debating proposals for stricted retail lockdown measures, the German parliament is showing willingness to allow Click & Collect options at non-essential stores being forced to shut down because of the coronavirus
+++ The European Union is allowing duty-free entry of cotton garments and other products from Uzbekistan, which is building up its apparel and footwear manufacturing industry
Marketing
+++ Adidas extend its UEFA sponsorship contract to include the Women’s EUROs and Champions League, introducing 3D-printed midsoles with 4D4WD in the cleats and entering into a collaboration with Allbirds
+++ Adidas, which has been sponsoring the Boston Marathon since 1989, has extended the contract through 2030
+++ According to ESPN, the widow of Kobe Bryant has let the sponsorship deal with Nike expire on April 13 as both sides failed to reach an acceptable agreement for the retired basketball player, comparable to the lifetime contracts signed by Nike with Michael Jordan and LeBron James
+++ Blu Smooth Wetsuits has announced a partnership with Challenge Cape Town that makes Blu Smooth the official wetsuit partner of the event, scheduled to take place on Nov. 7
+++ Technogym has extended its partnership deal with Scuderia Ferrari on the supply of sophisticated athletic performance programs and equipment, which has lasted for more than 20 years, and which will also support the young drivers of the Ferrari Driver Academy – in addition to drivers and the entire team - starting from this year
+++ Therabody has announced a new agreement with the Australian Football League (AFL), which has named the company as its official recovery partner of the 2021 Toyota AFL Premiership Season +++
CSR & Sustainability:
+++ Converse has collaborated with an artist and activist, Aretha Brown, to paint a mural at the Converse Fitzroy store in Melbourne - as part of its global campaign Converse City Forests - which uses a specialized paint that absorbs CO² during the drying process, like a tree
+++ ZDHC has announced Brooks Running as a new “Friend” of the ZDHC community, which has concurrently welcomed Zimmerman, also as a Friend, as well as Hayleys Fabric and Kelheim Fibres as Contributors +++
