by The Editors on March 24, 2009
Tiffany Montgomery has been all over the Active bankruptcy coverage on Shop-eat-surf.com. Today, she drove to the Federal Courthouse in Riverside and picked up a copy of the bankruptcy filings and is kicking down all the details.
Also of note is the list of Active’s 20 largest unsecured creditors, which reads like a Who’s Who of action sports brands. Active owes a total of $8.8 million to its 20 largest unsecured creditors. . . .Interestingly, only one brand is on the list of secured creditors – the Burton Corporation. Secured creditors get payment priority in a bankruptcy.
Montgomery also notes that Active is cutting their contracts with the following team members: “Andrew Reynolds, Kenny Anderson, Billy Marks, Erik Ellington, Daewong Song and Jim Greco.
Looks like P-Rod and some others have escaped the axe of the time being. For more details (including the list of creditors with amounts owed) follow the jump.
[Link: Shop-eat-surf.com]
by The Editors on March 19, 2009
According to an 8-K filed on March 13, 2009 by Spy Optic parent company Orange 21 the company has cut employee pay by 10 percent for at least three months.
Pursuant to the Reduction, the annual base salaries of the Company’s salaried employees were reduced by ten percent (10%) and the Company’s hourly employees were put on reduced work schedules that resulted in their compensation being reduced by ten percent (10%).
When you figure that nearly everything but fuel, food, and healthcare seems to be running at about 50% off it’s really not that bad.
[Link: SEC.gov via Outdoor Business Update]
by The Editors on March 19, 2009
Casey Wasserman’s march to own a majority stake action sports media moved forward today as the founders of GrindTV announced that they were being rolled into Wasserman Media Groups’ Sportnet to form a new company owned by Wasserman’s Sportnet in partnership with Softbank Capital.
“By joining forces with Sportnet, we now have access to deep sport-specific communities on sites such as Wetsand.com, Motocross.com and Skateboard.com. We are committed to leveraging these complementary online properties to create the leading action sports media company for fans, marketers, and the industry,” said GrindTV’s CEO Erik Hawkins and COO Greg Morrow. . . . “The combination of GrindTV and Sportnet creates a clear market-leader in the exciting action sports segment,” said SoftBank Capital Managing Director Eric Hippeau. “We have been behind GrindTV from the very beginning, and its always exciting when a portfolio company takes flight.”
And then someday, when all the deals are done someone might actually discover a profitable revenue stream.
Follow the jump for the entire release.
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by The Editors on March 18, 2009
We kind of laugh when we see that Nike lumps Hurley and Converse under the header “Other Businesses” along with Cole Haan, Nike Golf and Umbro when it releases financial reports. But either way, while profits at the mother ship declined 47 percent it looks like the “other businesses” survived the storm.
For the third quarter, revenue for the Other businesses, which include Cole Haan, Converse Inc., Hurley International LLC, NIKE Golf, and Umbro Ltd, increased 1 percent to $592.2 million compared to $587.4 million last year with the group posting a third quarter pre-tax loss of $344.1 million versus pretax income of $106.1 million for the same period last year.
None of this is really comparable though because they didn’t have the same “other businesses” last year that they have now. How’s that for insights into the business. Apparently, someone in the “other businesses” is doing just fine. We’ll assume for entertainment sake that it’s Hurley. Good job, Bob.
[Link: MarketWatch]
by The Editors on March 18, 2009
Nike, Inc. is releasing its third quarter fiscal 2009 financial results today, March 18, 2009, at approximately 1:15 p.m. PT, following the close of regular stock market trading hours. Following the news release, NIKE management will host a conference call beginning at 2:00 p.m. PT to review the results.
We’re not sure they will go into much SB, 6.0, or Hurley detail, but the whole think can be listened to live on the web at www.nikebiz.com/investors. An archived version of the call will be available through midnight, March 25, 2009.
[Link: BusinessWire]
by The Editors on March 17, 2009
Apparently, a stock can just keep getting junkier and junkier. Today Standard & Poor’s Rating Service did just that to Quiksilver, according to a story on Forbes.com.
Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said Tuesday that it lowered its ratings on Quiksilver Inc. deeper into junk status as the outdoor clothing and equipment company works toward a deal to improve its liquidity and capital structure. . . Our resolution of the CreditWatch listing will focus on Quiksilver’s ability to meet its near-term debt obligations, maintain adequate liquidity, and improve its operating business trends and financial metrics,” S&P said. “If the company can complete a refinancing or strategic transaction, then we may review the ratings for an upgrade.”
Oh, we thought they lowered the rankings because of that new Quiksilver.com/GO website. The one that makes you count to 100 before it loads?
[Link: Forbes.com]
by The Editors on March 16, 2009
It’s long and detailed, but for those in the mood to read the latest info from Volcom, follow the jump for everything you’ve ever wanted to know. And yes, they “currently expect a decrease in revenue from Pacific Sunwear compared to 2008.”
That and more after the jump.
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by The Editors on March 12, 2009
Pac Sun reported Q4 numbers today and guess what? They sucked. But according to the Orange County Business Journal they were at least “better than expected.”
Losses for the quarter ended Jan. 31 totaled $27.1 million, or 42 cents per share, compared with a profit of $5.2 million, or 7 cents per share, last year. . . For the year, the Anaheim, Calif.-based company reported a loss of $63.8 million, or 59 cents per share, compared with a loss of $30.4 million, or 65 cents per share, last year. Revenue fell 4 percent to $1.25 billion from $1.31 billion last year.
It would be fun to be in a business where you have $63.8 million a year to lose, wouldn’t it?
[Link: BusinessWeek]
by The Editors on March 12, 2009
Things were bad everywhere, but Zumiez just announced a 49 percent slide in Q4 profit vs. last year. That’s like cuttin’ it in half.
Chief Executive Rick Brooks said the second half of fiscal 2008 was “incredibly challenging.” “Since September, the deteriorating economic conditions have significantly dampened consumer appetite for discretionary items,” Brooks said.
Yep, that’s what we keep hearing.
[Link: Forbes]
by The Editors on March 12, 2009
After yesterday’s Quiksilver conference call we kind of knew this was coming, but Reuters is now reporting that the company’s stock fell more than 20 percent in early trading based mostly on word that Quik was looking to sell off assets.
Analyst Eric Tracy of BB&T Capital Markets said in a note to clients that the company’s view of a muted cash generation, coupled with an extension of its credit line makes an asset sale unavoidable. . . “We believe the company may seek to sell its DC business to a strategic or financial buyer,” the analyst said, while expressing his worries that by selling DC, Quiksilver “would lose its fastest-growing, highest-margin business.”
That’s the rub isn’t it? Reminds us a little of Stephen King’s story Survivor Type.
[Link: Reuters]
Tiffany Montgomery has been all over the Active bankruptcy coverage on Shop-eat-surf.com. Today, she drove to the Federal Courthouse in Riverside and picked up a copy of the bankruptcy filings and is kicking down all the details.
