by The Editors on April 24, 2013
It’s been a cold, hard winter for fans of June Mountain’s rocking terrain, after parent company Mammoth closed the mountain due to budgetary constraints last year. Now, it appears Mammoth Mountain is putting that all behind them by announcing that June Mountain will reopen for business in “mid-December 2013.”
“We couldn’t be more pleased to announce that June Mountain will be back in operation for the 2013-14 season,” said Carl Williams, general manager of June Mountain. “Next winter we look forward to bringing skiers and snowboarders a great on-mountain experience while also planning for June’s future, including the possibility of a new lift and enhanced snowmaking.”
Now all they need is a new way to get up the face and things will be right back on track. Might have to wait until 2015-16 for that, however. For the official word from Mammoth follow the jump.
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by The Editors on April 23, 2013
So no, there’s been no stalling going on, but Billabong today announced that it has agreed to a request from Paul Naude and his Sycamore Consortium to extend their exclusivity offer period 10 more days until May 8, 2013.
Billabong and the Sycamore Consortium agree that both have been working constructively and with the utmost cooperation to progress the Quality of Earnings report and the potential transaction. Accordingly that extension has been granted and the period of exclusivity will now conclude on Wednesday 8 May 2013. . . It is anticipated that the extension will be adequate for the completion of the report and its consideration.
So, that means the original 10 day exclusive period (which began on April 9, 2013) has now stretched to a month, but then it appears they don’t work weekends. For the official word from Billabong, follow the jump. [click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 23, 2013
The rumors rolling the Australian business press last night is that talks between Paul Naude and Billabong have stalled, but, according to a story in The Age, Billabong says this not the case.
Billabong said it is on track to update the market on the status of exclusive talks on a potential takeover bid after exclusivity period ends this evening. . . ‘‘Consistent with the ASX announcement of April 9th, Billabong will then provide a further update on the status of the proposal,” a Billabong spokesman said.. . He refuted suggestions that negotiations have been delayed by Billabong failing to provide documents to the consortium lead by Billabong executive Paul Naude. . . ‘‘The team continues to work tirelessly and cooperatively, as it has done for almost four months. Any suggestion that information has been held back is entirely incorrect,’’ the spokesman said.
That means there should be an announcement real soon one way or another. Most analysts appear to believe a deal will go through because without it, Billabong is going to need to come up with another AUS$100 million to stay afloat. Talk about being stuck between rocks and sharper rocks. . .
[Link: The Age]
by The Editors on April 22, 2013
Billabong has reportedly wrapped up their exclusive talks with Paul Naude and his Sycamore Partners bakers and now it’s time for them to make a decision, according to a story in The Australian. They could make an announcement sometime today. But some analysts don’t like the deal at all.
Credit Suisse research analyst Grant Saligari has said the 60c offer is a weak one for shareholders, and he criticised Billabong’s decision to allow the Sycamore consortium to have exclusive access to its books after months of due diligence studies and without dropping any of the conditions attached to the proposal. . . The consortium has made its offer conditional on there being no material adverse change in the company’s performance, availability of funding and a minimum 15 per cent of Billabong shares being swapped for scrip in the new holding company.
Guess we’ll all know when we know.
[Link: The Australian]
by The Editors on April 22, 2013
It’s April 22nd and “everybody knows today is Earth Day, Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday to whoever’s being born,” and to celebrate the day, Burton Snowboards has announced that they have “stepped-up efforts” to support Protect Our Winters.
“Burton has a deep responsibility to the sport we helped pioneer and to the people and environment that sustain it,” said Burton President Donna Carpenter. “We are riders, and we take climate change personally because snowboarding is our life, our livelihood and our passion. By working more closely with POW, our hope is to encourage snowboarders to get involved with the very important work the organization is doing. Together, we can protect our winters.”
Burton is also working to “encourage more riders to join POW’s efforts.” Today they’re launching an “awareness campaign on Instagram. . . To get involved, riders simply upload a photo and caption that shows how they protect our winters to @burtonsnowboard on Instagram and tag #HowYouPOW.” For the official details, follow the jump. [click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 19, 2013
Fenway Partners, the New York-based private equity fund that owns Giro Helmet‘s parent company Easton-Bell is reportedly putting the company up for sale, according to a story on Reuters.
Based in Van Nuys, California, the company sells its products under several brands, including Easton, Bell, Riddell, Giro, Blackburn and Easton Cycling. It generated net sales of $827.2 million in fiscal year 2012.
According to the story, “people familiar with the matter” say the sale could bring as much as $900 million. Others, say it maybe difficult after a judge ruled that their football helmet arm, Riddell, may not have sufficiently warned players about the danger of concussions while wearing the helmets.
[Link: Reuters]
by The Editors on April 19, 2013
The Agenda Show is quickly escaping from the “four people on staff” mode that saw it through most of its first decade with a series of quality staff additions. The newest member of the team is Jim Shubin. He’s the new director of endemic relations for the show.
Shubin’s deep connections in the industry will undoubtedly strengthen AGENDA’s firm standing as the leading forum for both up-and-coming and established brands as the show continues to expand globally. A Southern California native, Shubin helped launch and grow Drawls and Stepson apparel lines to over $10 million sales before joining Dwindle Distribution, where he oversaw sales and marketing for the most influential brands in skateboarding and also launched Almost Skateboards.
Congrats, Mr. Shubin. For the official word from Agenda, follow the jump. [click to continue…]
by The Editors on April 15, 2013
Rob Dyrdek really does have the whole promo thing down on lock. This week the Tribeca Film Festival will be screening a Street League Skateboarding promotional advertisement documentary by Adam Bhala Lough titled The Motivation. We do so love the age of advertorial, especially when it comes to documentary filmmaking. Oh, and as you might imagine The Motivation looks to be very good as well. That’s called synergy. The Motivation premieres Thursday, April 25, 2013 at 9:30 PM EST.
If surfing is more your thing, the festival also will be showing the “initially Quiksilver funded,” Bob McKnight co-executive produced, ESPN Films owned film Hawaiian: The Legend of Eddie Aikau. It’s directed by Sam George and produced by Stacy Peralta, Paul Taublieb, Agi Orsi, and Dan Silver so it’s probably good, too.
[Link: Complex Mag]
by The Editors on April 15, 2013
If the Paul Naude driven Sycamore Partners deal for Billabong goes through company founder Gordon Merchant would lose about $960 million in value, according to a story on Goldcoast.com.au.
At the company’s peak in 2007, his shareholding was worth close to $1 billion but, based on the 60 a share offer, he will have $960 million wiped from his 15 per cent stake, now worth about $40 million. . . The deal may save the beleaguered retailer from annihilation but it’s a massive plunge from the $4 billion the company was once worth in 2007, when its shares touched $18.51. . . It will now be up to shareholders to decide whether they want to end their years of takeover fatigue, accept the offer and get out while they can.
Hey, but on the upside that $960 million loss is really only on paper. . .
[Link: Goldcoast.com.au]
by The Editors on April 11, 2013
Quiksilver’s recent financial challenges aren’t going to drag Street League Skateboarding down. No way. That’s because Street League just bumped their sponsorships up with a “multi-year partnership with Nike SB that supports the mission of elevating professional skateboarding worldwide with the SLS Nike SB World Tour.”
“Nike SB is committed to inspiring and supporting skateboarders around the world,” said Melanie Strong, Sr Director of Global Brand for Nike SB. “This is a true partnership and testament to Street League Skateboarding in that we are celebrating skateboarding on the grand stage and making this journey accessible to all fans and skaters.”
This year’s tour includes stops in Kansas City, Portland, and Newark as well as international events in Brazil, Spain, and Germany. Phew, that was a close one. Follow the jump for all the details. [click to continue…]
It’s been a cold, hard winter for fans of June Mountain’s rocking terrain, after parent company Mammoth closed the mountain due to budgetary constraints last year. Now, it appears Mammoth Mountain is putting that all behind them by announcing that June Mountain will reopen for business in “mid-December 2013.”
