Corporate:
+++ A private equity company, Capidea, has acquired the majority of the shares in the Westin and Kinetic brands of fishing tackle products from Denmark’s Fairpoint Outdoors, without a change in their top management
+++ Racer, a French manufacturer of ski and other sports gloves founded in 1927, unveiled its new logo on Sept. 1, the 10th one in the company’s history, along with a new Urban Mobility range to be launched by the end of the year
Management:
+++ The Athlete’s Foot, which recently changed ownership, has a new president for the Americas, Matt Lafone, a former vice president of sport style for Puma who also served as chief operating officer for Payless ShoeSource
+++ Life Fitness has appointed a new vice president of marketing, Matt Smith, who worked for Procter & Gamble, Unilever and the Performance Sports Group (Bauer Hockey, Easton Baseball, Maverik, Cascade Lacrosse), among other stations
+++ Stefan Dobocsky is resigning as CEO of Lenzing on Sept. 30 by mutual agreement, and he will be replaced by Cord Prinzhorn on a interim basis, pending the recruitment of his successor
DTC:
+++ Foot Locker has shut down the first Jordan store in Europe, opened in Paris nearly five years ago, renaming it as Foot Locker, but according to sport-guide.com, Nike is looking for a more central location in the French capital for a directly operated Jordan location
+++ The first pop-up Allbirds store in South Korea has opened in the Gangnam district of Seoul, selling footwear and clothing including the brand’s new activewear line until Oct. 31
Product:
+++ Reebok and Prince have launched a collaborative capsule collection of footwear and apparel to be worn on and off the tennis court
+++ FootJoy is launching a new HyperFlex BOA golf shoe for women with an advanced midsole/outsole combination and the BOA fit system
+++ Dior will design casual and formal clothing for the members of the Paris Saint Germain football team for the next two years, replacing Hugo Boss as the club’s official tailor
Marketing:
+++ Five new ski athletes from five countries have joined Head’s “World Club Rebels” team: Stefan Lutz (Germany), Stephanie Venier (Austria), Tanguy Nef (Switzerland), Leif Kristian Nestvold-Haugen (Norway) and Ryan Cochran-Siegle –U.S.)
CSR & Sustainability
+++ Like in France, Decathlon is participating in World Cleanup Day in the U.K., hosting 10 litter-picking events in England, Scotland and Wales on the weekend of Sept. 18-19, in partnership with Planet Patrol
Trade Shoes & Other Events:
+++ China Fish, the fishing tackle trade show that was going to be held in a physical and virtual format in Beijing in October, has again been postponed because of a spike in Covid-19 infections
