Marker Völkl claims that Völkl earned a solid 13 percent share of the global alpine ski market in 2009, ranking fourth in value among the major players in the sector, while Marker remained second-best in ski bindings, with a slightly improved market share of 29 percent. In the U.S., Völkl now ranks in second place and Marker remains market leader.
The company plans to expand its investments in new production, technologies and marketing by more than 10 percent in 2010. In the past season, it has seen positive siogns from the U.S., Canada, France, Germany, Austria, Japan, the Scandinavian countries and Spain.
The winter sports segment of Jarden Corporation’s Outdoor Solutions division, which is represented mainly by Marker Völkl and by K2, had a 7-8 percent drop in sales during the fourth quarter of 2009, better than the double-digit drop that the management had expected. Jarden says revenues in this segment should grow by 5 to 10 percent for the 2010-11 winter season.
Jarden’s Outdoor Solutions division includes many other brands including Coleman, Rawlings and Marmot. The company is predicting higher revenues and margins this year for the division, though full year revenues will be negatively hit by about $65 million because of the sale of the JT Paintball business and the licensing of Adio footwear.
In the fourth quarter, Jarden’s Outdoor Solutions division saw its total revenues go up by 4.7 percent to $517 million, but its earnings dropped by 14 percent to $49.4 million before non-recurring charges, mainly because of the product mix. After adjustments, operating earnings were $3.3 million, compared with a loss of $400,000 in the same period last year.
For all of 2009, the division’s sales were down by 7 percent to $2,312 million and operating income also slipped by 7 percent to $161.6 million.
Overall, Jarden’s quarterly sales grew by 3 percent to $1.39 billion, generating net income of $1.2 million, against a loss of $170 million in 2008. For the full year, the group’s net sales were down by 4 percent to $5.2 billion. Net income was $129 million, versus a net loss of $58.9 million in 2008. Cash flow from operations surged to $641 million from $250 million.
