Columbia Sportswear has appointed Patrick Chevallier as director of sales in Europe. The 46-year-old Frenchman held a comparable position with Amer Sports for which he supervised 20 countries in the EMEA region, especially in Eastern and Central Europe. Prior to that, he had served for Salomon for twelve years. Chevallier will report to Christian Finell, Columbia’s European general manager, who told SGI Europe that Chevallier will be basically in charge of supervising the company’s regional subsidiaries and distributors. The company’s sales slipped in the second quarter by 3 percent to $213.1 million. The net loss was $1.8 million as compared to a net income at $10 million in the same period in 2007. In the U.S. market sales decreased by stunning 18 percent down to $95.6 million. This decrease was partially offset by a generous increase in the EMEA region of 13 percent to $63.4 million, boosted by the strong euro. For the entire fiscal year 2008, Columbia expects a decline in sales of 3 percent (more in The Outdoor Industry Compass).