by The Editors on May 3, 2010
Jake and Donna Carpenter will be moving back into the official drivers’ seats at Burton Snowboards while the company searches for a CEO to replace Laurent Potdevin who announced his resignation today.
Burton today announced the departure of CEO Laurent Potdevin, who plans to pursue other opportunities after working at the world’s leading snowboard company for 15 years. Laurent will stay connected to Burton as a consultant and advisor to the company. . . “Laurent and I have had a great 15 years together,” says Jake Burton Carpenter, Founder and Chairman of Burton Snowboards. “I support his decision to move on, and as a company we’ve always looked at change as an opportunity. This marks a new chapter for Burton during a time when snowboarding is gaining a lot of momentum.”
Probably wouldn’t be bad for anyone involved if this search took a little longer than expected. Jake looks so good behind the wheel. . . follow the jump for the entire release.
[click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 29, 2010
Hey, look: Volcom made boat loads of money in Q1. In fact, total consolidated revenues were $77.4 million with $42 million of that passing through as gross profit. Hot damn. It appears there’s a future in marking up China products. Q1 was so good that even CEO Wooly was surprised.
“Our results for the quarter were stronger than we had anticipated, representing a solid start to the year and continued strength for both the Volcom and Electric brands,” said Richard Woolcott, Volcom’s chairman and chief executive officer. “Combined with great product, focused marketing and solid distribution, we believe we are well positioned to capitalize on the many opportunities before us and pave the way for continued growth and success.”
Here is our favorite stat: “At March 31, 2010 the company had cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments totaling $109 million, and no long-term debt.” Read it again: no long-term debt.
To follow the jump, click it like you care.
[click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 29, 2010
On Saturday, April 24, 2010, Shane Wallace invited a few people to Rancho Cucamonga, California for the soft-launch opening of OK Skate’s first retail showroom. It was a chance to show everyone what he and the OK Skate crew have been working on for the past six months.
Located on a frontage street near Interstate 15 just North of Interstate 10, the warehouse/ office/ showroom combo is in that strange zone between the Eastern edge of Los Angeles sprawl and the Western front of the Inland Empire. The business park that houses OK Skate is a few blocks from the nearest retail center, but signs on the upstairs windows are visible from the southbound lanes of the freeway. Commuters who continue further south can’t help but notice the large Active Ride Shop warehouse on the opposite side of the 15. The location is likely no accident, though Shane says it was chosen based on “area demographics.”
OK Skate marks Wallace’s return to retail after the Active Ride Shop bankruptcy and subsequent sale pulled the rug out from under much of the industry last March. Between greeting friends at the door, putting final tweaks on the POS system, and watching kids skate the showroom’s mini ramp, Shane had time to sneak upstairs to his office above the shop for a short interview to discuss what OK Skate is, how it came about, and what they have planned for the future.
Follow the jump for photos and the entire interview.
[Editors’ Note April 30, 2010: After reading the interview for the first time online, Shane had a few things to add. We have placed those comments at the end of the interview.]
[click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 28, 2010
Whistler-Blackcomb resort owner Intrawest (and its parent company Fortress Investment Group) has apparently swung successfully on the finance monkey bars once again and found a lender willing to not only pay off all their old loans, but also give them another four years to come up with $1.7 billion, according to a story on Reuters.
Details of the new loan were not released, but Intrawest, a unit of Fortress Investment Group (FIG.N), said on Tuesday that all prior lenders had been repaid in full and the new loan does not mature until 2014. . . Intrawest had been negotiating with lenders to refinance the $1.7 billion in debt taken on when Fortress purchased it in 2006. The earlier loans had been due in December.
Sounds like someone has a little more confidence than we do in Intrawest’s ability to turn resort real estate into cold hard cash. Hope there are some buyers, because they’re definitely not going to make up $1.7 billion with lift tickets and green fees.
[Link: Reuters]
by The Editors on April 27, 2010
Iconix Brand Group Inc., the parent company of ecko, Zoo York, Op, and Ed Hardy to name a few, announced today that they have purchased the Peanuts brand from E.W. Scripps “in partnership with the heirs of Charles Schulz,” for $175 million according to a story in the Wall Street Journal.
The Peanuts licenses generate annual retail sales of more than $2 billion world-wide, according to Iconix. “This asset is a dream for a marketer,” said Neil Cole, chief executive of Iconix, who said his favorite Peanuts character is Charlie Brown. . . “Neil and his team have great respect for who the Peanuts characters are and they honor all we have accomplished, and the spirit with which we do business,” said Jean Schulz, Mr. Schulz’s widow.
According to the story “Iconix expects Peanuts to generate roughly $75 million in annual royalties.” Apparently, newspapers companies are looking for revenue where ever they can find it. We can hardly wait for the Zoo York x Pig Pen collab decks. . .
[Link: The Wall Street Journal]
by The Editors on April 27, 2010
Adidas Originals appears to have hooked up a little collab with Burton Snowboards that will bring Burton off the snow and Adidas Originals in with the shred kids, according to a story on Sports One Source.
The line, which will consist of 21 apparel pieces and seven styles of footwear, is expected to hit select Adidas Originals and Burton stores worldwide in November. It will sport Adidas Originals Trefoil and Burton branding and prices will range from $40 to $350 for apparel and $90 to $200 for footwear.
Adidas Originals’ VP Ben Pruess and Burton’s SVP & CD Greg Dacyshyn seem overjoyed with the deal. It’s two-two marketing plans in one.
Product photos on High Snobiety (via Empire Ave). Or, follow the jump for the entire release
[Link: Sports One Source]
[click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 26, 2010
A press release issued by the Carlsbad, California based Simo Holdings, Inc. seems to suggest that Gatorz (the eyewear company) and No Fear (the brand) are somehow getting together in what the release terms a “reverse take-over of Gatorz by No Fear.” Here are a few of the details:
Pursuant to the terms of the Merger Agreement, among other things: (i) Simo Holdings will sell to Gatorz all of the shares of common stock it owns in No Fear Retail Stores, Inc. (“No Fear”), a subsidiary of Simo Holdings, in exchange for 99,075,001 common shares of Gatorz and 52,441,932 restricted common shares of Gatorz; and (ii) NF Acquisition Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gatorz, will merge with and into No Fear.
As we have no idea what any of this means, we’ll skip the speculation and just direct everyone to the entire press release which appears after the jump.
[click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 26, 2010
Vipe Desai has deep roots in core action sports and after a short recent stint at Monster Energy Drink he’s landed at Transworld Media as their new Senior Marketing Director, according to a press release posted on Transworld Business.
With over 18 years of experience in the action sports industry, including retail, non-profit, youth brand consulting, and marketing, Vipe brings TransWorld Media a wealth of talent . . Vipe most recently served as the Director of Marketing for Monster Energy Drink. . . Prior to Monster, Vipe owned and operated H20 Surf and Snowboard Shop in Orange County, CA, for nearly eight years and also founded and managed Propaganda, a youth brand-consulting agency since 2000.
This seems like a perfect fit for everyone involved. For the rest of the release click the link.
[Link: Transworld Business]
by The Editors on April 22, 2010
Shane Wallace appears to have been busy these past few months. We’re not spilling all the details, but if you want to keep a little closer tabs on everything going down at OK Skate in Rancho Cucamonga, California it might not be a bad idea to follow them at @okskatecom and on facebook.
Ok Skate’s grand opening is May 8, 2010, but we’ll keep you posted.
[Link: OK Skate]
by The Editors on April 21, 2010
What do you do if winning an Olympic Gold Medal in snowboarding doesn’t bring the breakfast cereal, big-box retailer clothing money falling in like rain? If you’re two-time Olympic medalist Ross Powers you go back to your alma mater, apparently.
According to a news item posted on the Stratton Mountain School website, Ross Powers is the school’s new Snowboarding Program Director.
“Ross returns to us with more than a decade of experience competing at the highest levels of world-wide competition,” said Christopher Kaltsas, SMS Headmaster. “Ross is one of the most highly profiled figures in the history of the Halfpipe snowboard circuit, and we are pleased to have him join our staff.”
Ross, who is replacing Mike Mallon, will join the staff at the beginning of the 2010-2011 school year. At least he’s not teaching gym.
[Link: Stratton Mountain School via First Tracks]
Jake and Donna Carpenter will be moving back into the official drivers’ seats at Burton Snowboards while the company searches for a CEO to replace Laurent Potdevin who announced his resignation today.
