Right on the heels of one of the most amazing surf contests ever comes a little bad news for Quiksilver. Yesterday (September 21, 2011) the stock reached a new 52-week low of $3.44, according to a story on The Street. And what they have to say about the stock is even worse:
TheStreet Ratings rates Quiksilver as a sell. The company’s weaknesses can be seen in multiple areas, such as its disappointing return on equity, weak operating cash flow and generally weak debt management.
Ouch. Click here for the complete The Street overview of Quiksilver’s stock.
McSweeney’s Internet Tendency skateboarding columnist Joel Rice interviewed Wasserman Media Group Senior Vice President Circe Wallace to get a better understanding the wild, independent world of corporate skateboarding, and as usual she makes it all sound perfectly logical — especially the “sexy” part:
The characters are attractive! They have chiseled features and they dress flamboyantly! And, like, they’re sexy and they’re good looking kids! I mean Dylan Rieder… It doesn’t get much sexier than that! It’s like a boy band but better because they are actually doing something manly and it’s really aggressive, super-expressive and athletically intense!
Okay. We get the Dylan thing, but when she starts talking about drinking “Lucky Stripes” with Jake Phelps and Julien Stranger at 14 we kind of lost our way. But you should read the whole thing anyway.
Shaun White has a new flavor of gum according to a story in the New York Times, and sadly, it’s not called “tangy ginger sweat.”
Whitemint, a new flavor of chewing gum by Stride, the Kraft Foods brand, is named for the athlete and features his likeness on the package. White, who appeared briefly in a commercial for a Stride line called 2.0 that was first shown in June, stars in a new commercial for Whitemint scheduled to begin on Monday.
And as only a packaged good marketing person could say: “some consumers may derive “emotional benefits” from chewing gum affiliated with the popular athlete.” Is that even possible?
The ex-wife of former Billabong CEO Matthew Perrin’s will reportedly get to keep their mega-million dollar Gold Coast home after a Queensland Supreme Court found that Mr. Perrin forged his wife’s signature (and his brothers) when he put their home up as security for a $13.5 million loan, according to a story in the Sydney Morning Herald.
The Queensland Supreme Court ruling means the Commonwealth Bank cannot enforce its mortgage over the couple’s Gold Coast mansion or enforce personal guarantees against Mr Perrin’s wife, Nicole Bricknell.
Quiksilver Australia has reportedly cut 20 merchandising and design positions from it’s Torquay headquarters thanks to a retail industry that is at its “worst in 20 years” according to a story in the Geelong Advertiser.
President of Quiksilver Asia Pacific Greg Healy yesterday told the Geelong Advertiser the job cuts were regrettable but needed in times when retail sales were down and there were overlaps between some positions. . . “I would say it’s been a pretty tough day for us because we pride ourselves on being a close-knit community but some decisions have to be made for the long-term,” Mr Healy said.
Some of those cut were reportedly offered transfer position in the US. That was nice.
Volcom’s Senior Vice President of Strategic Development and General Counsel Hoby Darling continues the post PPR acquisition VeeCo executive team departures by announcing that he is leaving the company and taking a job with Nike where he will be “head of strategy and planning for its affiliate brands,” according to a story on FINS.com.
Darling’s thoughts on leaving make sense:
For me, I had taken the company public, helped grow it from a $116 million company to almost $400 million, then sold it to a great company in PPR. It felt like, hey, been there, done that, I had done what my role was designed to do in strategic development and decided it was time for the next challenge.
News like this always makes us wonder who will be next. Who could it be? For the rest of the Darling interview click the link.
“This is a tremendously exciting day for VF. We are delighted to officially welcome Timberland(R) and Smartwool(R) to VF’s family of brands,” said Eric Wiseman, VF Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. “This acquisition strengthens VF’s position within the outdoor industry by adding two strong, global, and authentic brands with significant momentum and growth opportunities. VF is committed to helping the Timberland(R) and Smartwool(R) brands reach their global growth potential, while maintaining each brand’s unique essence.”
Patrik Frisk, who has been president, VF Outdoor & Action Sports EMEA since 2009 will be the new president of Timberland. For the rest of the details, follow the jump. [click to continue…]
Ever wanted to lock up your skateboard to a bike rack after a roll to the store? Yeah, we never have either. But that hasn’t stopped San Diego, California inventor Tom Piszkin from coming up with the “Valet My Stick” skateboard lock, according to a story on First Coast News.
“Theaters don’t want skateboards in, restaurants don’t want skateboards in, a classroom gets cluttered with skateboards, so there are lots of places where they are starting to be restricted,” he says. . . Piszkin came up with the ideal solution. . . It’s like a bicycle cable lock, but with a loop big enough to go around the skateboard truck, or axle.
To quote the skater interviewed, “I never really actually thought about a skateboard lock.” And neither has anyone else.
“This acquisition represents a significant step for both Kooey and West in our strategy designed to accelerate growth in both businesses,” said Nikki Silverthorne, Director and Designer of Kooey. “We are now focused on seizing the opportunities in both local and international markets that this transaction has created for us. We are looking forward to delivering on the promise of this acquisition to build both brands exponentially and with speed.”
Kind of cool that the brand will remain a Western Australian company. Follow the jump for all the details. [click to continue…]
As more evidence that longboarding is its own brand of skateboarding comes The Longboard Expo to be held January 5-6, 2012 at the Hilton Long Beach in Long Beach, California.
This show is focused on bringing brands and buyers together in one place to conduct business in professional environment. The time is right for a truly focused show that celebrates the innovations found within longboarding.
Right on the heels of one of the most amazing surf contests ever comes a little bad news for Quiksilver. Yesterday (September 21, 2011) the stock reached a new 52-week low of $3.44, according to a story on The Street. And what they have to say about the stock is even worse:
