Retail: 63
+5.62%
Retail: 140
+5.67%
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Mon, Aug 28, 2017
Vol 1, Issue No. 33
PRESENTING SPONSORS
Monday, January 29, 2018
Volume 2, Issue No. 04

Can New Intros Spark Spring Sneaker Business?

The official start of spring may be 60 days away, but the race for the next, hot new sneaker/athletic shoe has already begun. Adidas and Nike have similar-looking and feeling new fare in the Futurecraft 4D and Epic React Flyknit ($150 retail), respectively, and Under Armour hopes to establish a stronger footing with its HOVR smart styles that allow wearers to track workout metrics without the use of an app or mobile device during a run. Each brand, undoubtedly, wants a category game-changer by establishing buzz among consumers.

Adidas, which has enjoyed decent consumer response to its UltraBOOST and AlphaBOUNCE styles in recent years, introduced its highly touted Futurecraft 4D shoe earlier this month with a limited-edition release of the $300 retail shoe in New York with retailers Packer, KITH and SNS. The Three Stripes developed the technology it calls "the next step after 3D printing" with Digital Light Synthesis (DLS) and CARBON. Projected UV light into resin helps create a single component midsole with 20,000 struts for breathability, comfort, cushioning and stability. The eventual goal for Adidas and its partners is a system where customers submit their footwear size requirements and measurements and get a shoe built to those specifics on demand. Work has begun to lower the cost and increase the volume of the technology. For now, however, there will be approximately 5,000 pairs of Futurecraft 4D available this season before an acceleration to estimated 100,000 pairs by year-end.

At Nike, a material construction developed in-house by Swoosh chemist and engineers for more than three years, will bring the React foam midsole with its soft bounce and responsive feel to a running silhouette and select specialty retailers and nike.com on February 22. Much is riding on React and Nike will support the expanded rollout with a $50 million marketing campaign, bigger than the Swoosh’s Olympic spend. The midsole system was first introduced last June in a basketball shoe, the React Hyperdunk 2017 Flyknit. Going beyond Air and Lunarlon, Nike put React foam through more than 2,000 hours of testing on basketball players in 2016 and said it discovered greater energy return than any other Swoosh basketball shoe ever tested. In a separate development, according to the website SportTechie, a Nike partnership with Paris-based SmartPixels has established the NikeiD Direct Studio. It will utilize augmented video mapping to allow consumers to customize their sneakers with colors and materials. Only available with the Air Force 1 iD initially, the program will be expanded to additional styles.

Meanwhile, Under Armour’s new smart running shoes, the HOVR Phantom ($140) and Sonic ($110), hit retail stores on February 1. The styles utilize a lightweight chip in the midsole of the right shoe to track a number of key running metrics, whether on a treadmill or on the road. Workout data will be stored in the shoe until it syncs with the brand’s MapMyRun app via Bluetooth. The company will introduce a new digital coaching product to offer individual insights around the user’s runs, age, height, weight and gender. Phantom and Sonic wearers will have the option to share their workout progress on a newsfeed community of fitness enthusiast.

Two Thumbs Up for Denver Trade Show Debut

The latest high-tech apparel for outdoor sports was a highlight at the bustling trade show. Photos by Emily Walzer.

Change is good. That was evident at the inaugural Outdoor Retailer + Snow Show trade event in Colorado last week, where the atmosphere inside the Convention Center buzzed with energy and execs reported busy appointment schedules–factors that reflect a rejuvenated industry fair. Attendees also gave two thumbs up to the city of Denver for its accommodations, restaurant scene and outdoor-friendly vibe.

According to event organizers 11,000 retail buyers registered for the Show that featured 1,000 exhibitors. (Final attendance numbers were not available at press time.) Regardless of an official count, it felt like a big show, with suppliers offering a wide range of softgoods and equipment on three large floors in a downtown venue that attracted a steady flow of attendee traffic in show aisles. The consensus among the crowd was that the two trade groups – Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) and Snowsports Industries America (SIA) – did a good job integrating the different memberships. In fact, it seemed less like a combined show, and more like a new show.

Denver certainly put out the welcome mat. From a small army of “Outdoor Retailer + Snow Show” greeters stationed at the airport, train station and Convention Center, to Colorado governor John Hickenlooper making the rounds morning, noon and night during the four-day fair, locals were happy to play host to this lively industry gathering.

Outdoor Industry sales for the last 12 months ending November 2017 were $18.9B while season-to-date Snow Industry sales were $2B, according to NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service.

Outdoor Retailer ended its 20-year run in Salt Lake City last summer in reaction to Utah leaders’ policy decisions over public lands. OIA will continue advocacy efforts focused on keeping public lands public, along with taking a stance on climate change initiatives. Colorado based group Protect Our Winters (POW), in collaboration with SIA, now adds its voice to these discussions.

Vendors were uniformly positive about the launch of OR+Show Show. “It's a new day,” said Schoeller Textiles CEO Siegfried Winkelbeiner, explaining that with clothing and equipment together it felt like the massive, and extremely popular, European ISPO trade event.

David Parkes, founder, Concept III Textiles, said, “The mood is good and it helps to have a cold winter and strong economy.”  He added, “It was time for a change and to combine the show. It’s new but there is familiarity here, which is testament to the fellowship of the industry.”

A three-show schedule is the new plan: a January Outdoor Retailer + Snow Show, a summer Outdoor Retailer and an Outdoor Retail winter show in November. Now attention turns to whether vendors will sign on for all three or cherry pick the lineup.  While most outdoor industry execs say they will likely commit to exhibiting at Summer OR in July 2018, this “three show” issue will undoubtedly be a major talking point as the year unfolds.

For the moment, however, Denver not only did not disappoint, it delivered better than expected.

New U.S. Soccer Leader Will Focus on Youth Development

United States Soccer Federation building in Near South Side, Chicago. Attribution: TonyTheTiger
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Two women and two lawyers are among the candidates to become the next president of the U.S. Soccer Federation February 10, some four months before World Cup 2018 commences in Russia without a U.S. team participating since it failed to qualify. Most of the candidates for the unpaid executive position say the USSF needs to take a greater role in the sport’s youth development and work aggressively to reform itself at every level. Tweets last week with the hashtag “#TimeForChangeUSSF” called for “fresh leadership at the organization that will put an end to the rigged system” and more transparency.

The youngest candidates for the position, each 36, are three-time Olympian Hope Solo who helped the U.S. Women’s Team capture the 2015 World Cup as its goalkeeper, and former University of Virginia midfielder and 2002 MLS Rookie of the Year, Kyle Martino. The two lawyers vying to lead U.S. Soccer into the next decade are former Lafayette College soccer player and current NY corporate attorney Michael Winograd, 47, and Steve Gans, 57, a Boston attorney associated with U.S. Soccer since the 1970s. Meanwhile, Kathy Carter, 48, president of Soccer United Marketing, has called the U.S. men’s team loss to Trinidad (that eliminated the squad for World Cup contention) “a rallying cry for all us.” She wants an independent commission led by Casey Wasserman, who helped land the 2028 Olympic bid for Los Angeles, to develop a strategic growth plan for soccer.

It isn’t immediately clear if any of the major athletic companies favor one candidate over the others for the USSF executive position, but all of them would likely support anyone who puts an increased emphasis on youth soccer development. Between 2010 and 2015, U.S. outdoor soccer participation declined 9 percent with the number of indoor game players falling 2 percent over the same period, according to the SFIA’s 2016 Team Sports report. Outdoor soccer was a favorite sport of 17 percent of 6- to 12-year olds in 2015 and 11.7 percent of the 13- to 17-age group.

Foot Locker Buys into Carbon38

Lauren Peters, EVP/CFO of Foot Locker, is joining the board of the women’s luxury brand following FL’s $15 strategic investment in the Los Angeles women’s luxury brand that markets about a dozen premium women’s brands on its website.

While Carbon38 will use the new funding to accelerate its strategic growth plan, including an expansion of its global omnichannel strategy, Foot Locker will aim to leverage insights from the company to elevate its fledgling SIX:02 business, product margins and its flagging apparel segment that generated 18 percent of total revenues in FY16 versus more than 30 percent nearly two decades ago.

Besides Foot Locker, other seed round investors in Carbon38, which has raised $26 million over the last four years, include: Montage Ventures; Christin Beauchamp, president of Amazon Fashion; and Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss.

Famous Footwear, Jet.com Presidents Departing

From lef tot right: Chris Quatrochi, Danny Ewoldsen, C.B. Tuite

Rick Ausick, an executive at the Caleres-owned chain since 2002, will retire this year as part of a planned succession. The retailer is said to be on track to report low-single digit same store sales in FY17. Ausick joined Famous in 2002 as SVP and Chief Merchandise Officer, later taking on the role as wholesale division president before becoming division president in 2010. Meanwhile, Liza Landsman, president of Jet.com, will leave in the coming months for another unidentified position after spending three years at the ecommerce company purchased by Walmart for $3.3 billion in September 2016.

Elsewhere,
Genesco’s Johnston & Murphy division names Danny Ewoldsen, most recently EVP of retail and ecommerce, as president starting February 4.

Snowsports Industries America (SIA) names Mike Adams, VP/Commercial Director for Amer Sports’ Wintersports Equipment division, as Chairman. Additionally, SIA adds industry veterans Dino Dardano (Hestra), Bruce Old (Patagonia), Jon Rucker (Head/Tyrolia) and Jim Satloff (Liberty Skis) to its board.   

Igloo Products hires Brandon Davis, most recently chief business officer for Energizer Holdings, as SVP of sales.

Nautilus, Inc. hires Chris Quatrochi as SVP, innovation where he will oversee the company innovation center, digital and user interface teams. 

Asics Corp., parent of Asics Americas, is promoting Yasuhito Hirota, 61, to president and COO, effective March 29. At that time, Chairman Motoi Oyama will relinquish title of president.

SFIA promotes Alex Kerman to manager of business operations and Alli Sherman, formerly with Under Armour, to coordinator of communications and marketing.

Ortholite, the provider of comfort and performance insoles, promotes C.B. Tuite to Chief Sales Officer from SVP of sales and marketing as the Amherst, MA company expands globally with solutions for over 250 footwear brands.

Tubes of the Week

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Numbers In Play
The Sports Insight Index is our opinion of what we think are the 30 most important public companies in the industry, 15 vendors and 15 retailers. Space considerations prevent us from tracking more, but we will make changes over time.
Index base of 100 is key to the closing prices of 12/31/14
Retail
The first month of 2018 has been good to investors with stock market rising more than 6 percent with three trading days left in January. With President Trump’s second “State of the Union” address set for January 30, strong earnings drove market indexes to record highs on January 26 as the U.S. dollar remained weak. Some key 2017 metrics emerged last week. Among them: U.S. GDP growth of 2.6 percent in the fourth quarter fell short of a 3 percent target on lower inventories and a wider trade deficit. U.S. GDP was 2.3 percent last year versus 1.6 percent in 2016. Imports rose 13.9 percent in 2017, but exports only increased 6.9 percent. Annual inflation was pegged at under 2 percent in 2017. As for the SIX retail index, it rose above 60 again with a 2.9 percent increase for the period. Eight stocks were up, seven fell. Tilly’s, whose shares have risen 60 percent over the last several months, declared a special $1.00 a share dividend. Foot Locker, meanwhile, made a $15 million strategic investment in Carbon38, a women’s activewear site. Lauren B. Peters, FL’s EVP/CFO is joining the Carbon 38 board. FL hopes to cull insights from the company, whose 10 flagship brands include LNA, NSF and Blanc Noir, for its own SIX:02 business. For Finish Line, whose shares have risen 12 percent since December 21, four months have passed with an acquisition announcement from Sports Direct. Meanwhile, Northcoast Research puts a “buy” and $56 target price on Camping World, whose namesake stadium in Orlando hosted the NFL’s annual Pro Bowl all-star game on Sunday. Dick’s sees Telsey Group raise its FY18 outlook to outperform and target stock price to $42, citing investments in efficiency, lower inventory levels and more product innovation from key vendors.
Brands
Another good week for the segment as it rose more than 4 percent with 12 stocks up and only three down for the period. Might the sports portfolio of Amer Sports, parent of Wilson and DeMarini, be a good home for Rawlings? Newell announced plans to divest the St. Louis company. Acushnet Holdings, a week after announcing its acquisition of Links & Kings, a luxury leather golf and leather accessories firm, introduces the low-compression Tour Soft golf ball to replace its NXT Tour and NXT Tour S balls and introduces the golf market to its luxury 1857 collection that debuts in July. GoPro shares sink after Morgan Stanley reports brand’s adventure cameras are not keeping pace with market demand. And Nike and Under Armour prepare for major launches for the spring season. In the Swoosh’s case, the Epic React Flyknit that took more than three years to develop hits February 22. Energy-returning React midsole is said to be softer, lighter and longer-lasting than other midsole materials. It will be interesting to see how it challenges Adi’s Alphabounce and Ultra Boost shoes. Under Armour, meanwhile, is debuting its new HOVR smart running shoes (Phantom and Sonic) this month that will track a number of metrics without the need to bring a smartphone along. Lightweight chip embedded in midsole of right shoe will sync with the brand’s MapMyRun app. Also, ahead of next week’s Winter Games in South Korea, company has introduced a new speed skating suit with an asymmetrical seam and a new fabric.

RETAIL: 61

41.07%

BRANDS: 119

18.67%

Retail Name (Ticker Symbol)
Close on 01/18/17
Close on 01/25/18
% change over week
Big 5 Sporting Goods (BGFV)
BGFV
$6.15
$6.10
-0.81%
Sports Direct (LON: SPD)
SPD
$517.91
$534.94
+3.29%
Camping World (CWH)
CWH
$43.53
$45.80
+5.21%
Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS)
DKS
$33.04
$32.88
-0.48%
Finish Line (FINL)
FINL
$13.20
$12.70
-3.79%
Foot Locker (FL)
FL
$48.59
$52.44
+7.92%
Genesco (GCO)
GCO
$34.90
$36.60
+4.87%
Hibbett Sports (HIBB)
HIBB
$24.95
$24.65
-1.20%
Kohl’s (KSS)
KSS
$64.85
$66.79
+2.99%
Macy’s (M)
M
$26.60
$26.64
+0.15%
Sportsman’s Warehouse (SPWH)
SPWH
$5.41
$5.11
-5.55%
Shoe Carnival (SCVL)
SCVL
$25.20
$24.54
-2.62%
Tilly’s (TLYS)
TLYS
$13.77
$15.24
+10.68%
Walmart (WMT)
WMT
$104.30
$106.60
+2.21%
Zumiez (ZUMZ)
ZUMZ
$22.40
$22.35
-0.22%
TOTAL
ZUMZ
$984.80
$1,013.38
+2.90%
Brand Name (Ticker Symbol)
Close on 01/18/17
Close on 01/25/18
% change over week
Acushnet Holdings (GOLF)
GOLF
$20.85
$21.72
+4.17%
adidas (ADDYY)
ADDYY
$104.67
$113.63
+8.56%
Amer Sports (AGPDY)
AGPDY
$27.19
$28.73
+5.66%
Callaway (ELY)
ELY
$13.97
$15.25
+9.16%
Columbia Sportwear (COLM)
COLM
$72.81
$74.59
+2.44%
Deckers Brands (DECK)
DECK
$83.53
$87.90
+5.23%
Fitbit (FIT)
FIT
$5.53
$5.42
-1.99%
GoPro (GPRO)
GPRO
$6.27
$5.96
-4.94%
lululemon (LULU)
LULU
$77.57
$78.62
+1.35%
Nautilus (NLS)
NLS
$13.40
$13.00
-2.99%
Nike (NKE)
NKE
$64.11
$67.71
+5.62%
Skechers (SKX)
SKX
$39.62
$40.69
+2.70%
Under Armour (UA)
UA
$12.37
$13.31
+7.60%
VF Corp. (VFC)
VFC
$78.43
$80.94
+3.20%
Wolverine Worldwide (WWW)
WWW
$32.57
$32.90
+1.01%
TOTAL
ZUMZ
$652.89
$680.37
+4.21%

Sports Insight Extra Podcast Series

Nikki Barua

The old way of retail is dead, and there is a massive opportunity to re-invent, proclaims the CEO of Beyond Curious in Los Angeles.

Matt O’Toole

President of Reebok dishes on the brand’s mission and objectives from its headquarters in Boston.

Gabriella Santaniello

Retail expert dishes on what’s going right and wrong in industry today and weighs in on the Walmart vs. Amazon tussle.

Guy Yehiav

The CEO of Profitect addresses the right medicine for changing the paradigm of accountability—prescriptive analytics.

Pat Ryan

Batter Up! The global product director for baseball/softball at Wilson Sports details the new USA Baseball standard that took effect January 1 and what it means when you hit the store this spring looking for a new stick for junior.

Patrick Clark

President of Nextwave, a Buford, GA system integrator, discusses benefits of an on-demand apparel microfactory, a bridge to Just In Time manufacturing, from Sourcing at MAGIC in Las Vegas.

Shawn McBride

Ketchum Sports & Entertainment EVP talks Olympics—impact of three consecutive Games in Asia, social media, corporate guerilla marketing and drawing in younger consumers.

Tyson McGuffin

Tennis pro Tyson McGuffin, 28, talks about the rising popularity of pickleball and how he became a champion in the sport.

Bob Mullaney

The 20-year shoe and retail industry veteran, recently named president and CEO of RG Brands, dishes on the comfort footwear business and Barry’s iconic Dearfoams brand.

Bob Smith

The design consultant who began his 20-year career as a graphic artist for Nike dishes on the blur between lifestyle and performance and the importance of Struktur, the creative conference for active, outdoor and urban design.

Rob & Mike Barnes

The co-founders of Selkirk Sports, a Hayden, ID maker of Pickleball paddles and accessories, dish on the rise of the sport that counted 2.5 million participants in 2015.

Brendan Candon

CEO of SidelineSwap, an online marketplace for used sports gear and equipment, dishes on the market and whether it steps on the toes of traditional, full-line retailers.

Dave McGillivray

The long-time race director and long-distance runner weighs in on marathon participation, the future of event marketing and his latest venture that may bring a marathon to a MLB ballpark near you.

Paul Froio

Reebok’s VP of U.S. Retail and Direct-to-Consumer channels talks about the company’s new South Boston headquarters and adjacent global flagship store.

Aquiles M. Bermùdez P.

The former president of the Dominican Association of Free Zone Companies and current member of the National Commission of Footwear addresses the industry, Dominican Republic’s infrastructure and Footwear Technology Institute.

W. Andrew Martin

The managing director for Baird in Charlotte, NC discusses the M&A climate, consumer loyalty to brands today and the impact of private label.

Mark Sullivan

The president of Formula4Media, LLC previews The Running Event conference and trade show set for November 28-December 1 in Austin, Texas.

Bryan Smeltzer

The general manager of Zamst Americas talks sports protectives, dispelling some of the consumer and athlete misconceptions about the category.

Emily Walzer

Formula4Media colleagues Emily Walzer, Textile Insight editor, Jennifer Beaudry-Ernst, footwear specialist, and contributor Kurt Gray, owner of SimplyGrayDesign, dish on key trends from the final Outdoor Retailer trade show in Salt Lake City.

Judith A. Russell

Shifting consumer purchasing patterns are vital to understanding today’s marketplace. Russell, a marketing and strategic planning professional, offered up her thoughts at TexWorld in New York on a panel with Sports Insight Extra’s Bob McGee.

Will Decker

Family-owned Silicon Valley firm Plug and Play, which dubs itself the “Ultimate Startup Ecosystem,” has raised over $6 billion in venture funding during its 11 years while bringing corporations, venture capitalists and start-ups together.

Matthew Lyon

In the fragmented hydration market, where price points for performance products are on the rise, HydraPak is an OE supplier to numerous brands and has its own lightweight, flexible products.

Eric Hayes

Superfeet Celebrates 40th Anniversary. The employee-owned company introduces footwear and rolls out a 3D printed insole program.

Shawn Neville

BOA introduces New Tech and Names New CEO. Nothing will constrict Boa Technology CEO Shawn Neville from helping the Denver company improve its customized fit solution.

Waingarten and Frydlewski

No strings attached. The married Argentinean couple has raised nearly $20 million for Hickies, a Brooklyn company addressing how athletic shoes are closed around the foot two eyelets at a time.

Michelle Carmichael

The Co-founder and Managing Partner of Partners Growth, which brings premium brands into the U.S. market, talks Finnish children’s wear brand Reima. 

Brian Beckstead

Six-year old Altra is teaming with Utah State University to develop outdoor design talent.

Declan Condron

Let's Go Hyperwear: Former Equinox personal trainer merges the innovative, functional fitness gear from Austin, TX company with programming for schools, camps and institutions.

Hugues Gontier

Sly and Simple. BlueFox.io and its technology enable a retailer to interact with customers in store and track traffic. No beacon required. The CMO explains the benefits of the platform.

Reza Raji

The CEO of Xenio Systems talks about the company’s new platform that tracks where shoppers spend time in physical stores and its patented hyper-positioning technology.

Jacob Torres Espino

The director of export promotion for Mexico’s Guanajuato State government agency addresses the proposed impact of the Border Adjustment Tax by the U.S. and the possibility of a renegotiated NAFTA free trade agreement.

Isabelle Ohnemus

The founder and CEO of EyeFitU, a former investment banker, talks ‘glocal’ assortments, shoppers’ personal sizing and global web payment options.

Tom Cove #2

The president and CEO of the SFIA addresses the most serious threat the industry has faced in the past half-century and the expected re-introduction of the PHIT Act by Congress.

Matteo Scarparo

The Italian global trade expert in footwear talks about the present and future of TheMicam trade show and the potential impact of a Border Adjustment Tax in the U.S. on imported shoes.

Dr. James Eakin

Dr. James Eakin, chief marketing officer and director of U.S. operations for Xenoma, discusses the Japan company’s e-skin shirt and entire wearable category.

Rusty Saunders

Industry senior statesman Rusty Saunders dishes on industry leadership, pressing issues and the inactivity pandemic.

Barbara Barclay

Expert Barbara Barclay, president of RightEye, talks eye-tracking technology and her company’s recent alliance with Major League Baseball and USA Baseball.

Julie Sylvester

Julie Sylvester, Executive Producer at Living in Digital Times, talks trends likely to emerge at Sports and FitnessTech Summit at CES in Las Vegas.

Chris Palmer

Chris Palmer, Founder and CEO of BoxFox, talks excess inventory and solutions for vendors, retailers and distributors.

Susie McCabe

Susie McCabe, SVP of global retail for Under Armour who previously spent 16 years at The Ralph Lauren Corp., dishes on UA’s retail strategy and new Brand House in Boston.

Tom Cove

On the eve of Election Day, we talk to three leading industry lobbyists on how the results may impact trade in the sporting goods, outdoor and apparel and footwear industries.

Rich Harper

On the eve of Election Day, we talk to three leading industry lobbyists on how the results may impact trade in the sporting goods, outdoor and apparel and footwear industries.

Stephen Lamar

On the eve of Election Day, we talk to three leading industry lobbyists on how the results may impact trade in the sporting goods, outdoor and apparel and footwear industries.

Bill McInnis

The president of Reebok Future discusses the intent of the unit and the brand’s plans to develop footwear in a new way.

Tom Fowler

Polar USA CEO Tom Fowler talks technology and the future of smart wearables.

Paul Schille

TREW CEO Paul Schille dishes on the eight-year old company in the process of completing its Series A round of funding and his dual career.

Jason Kaplan

Milestone Sports CEO Jason Kaplan dishes on the company’s low-cost, wearable pod and how it will help specialty retailers connect.

Duncan Finigan

OOFOS marketing executive talks about the recovery footwear brand and candidly about her courageous personal health journey.

Matt Priest

Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America President Matt Priest the likelihood of the Trans-Pacific Partnership being passed soon.

David and Josh Higgins

ING Source executives dish about compression technology and the Hickory, NC company’s breakthrough OS1st Brace Layer System.

Charles Liberge

Jones & Vining’s Charles Liberge addresses strategies and directions for the iconic brand.

Jim Baugh

PHIT America’s Jim Baugh dishes on the inactivity pandemic.

Sue Dooley and John Daher

Rockport Group senior executives talk about the brand’s fresh start under new ownership that has a major emphasis on versatility.

Josh Shaw

Mission Athletecare CEO Josh Shaw says thermoregulation is the New York company’s singular focus.

Tim Porth

Tim Porth of Octane Fitness talks trends, Zero Runner and the company’s January acquisition by Nautilus Inc.

David Costello

The principal and founder of Rising Tide Associates talks about industry advocate lobbying for the domestic textile and footwear industries.

Steven D’Angelo

The ‘47 brand executive dishes on the Boston company and long-time MLB licensee founded by his father Arthur and his late Uncle Henry.

Pam Gelsomini and CB Tuite

Pam Gelsomini, president, and CB Tuite, VP–sales, discuss the company’s products, partnerships and what’s new for the season ahead.

Kenneth G. Andres

The tradeshowdirector for the American Sportfishing Association casts comments on the activity’s popularity, and trends in fishing.

Dick Sullivan

The principal and founder of Rising Tide Associates talks about industry advocate lobbying for the domestic textile.

Dave Coradini

The VP of sales and sponsorships for Spalding, Dave Coradini talks Shot Tracker and basketball.

Scott McGuire

The executive brand and product innovation leader dishes to F4M’s Emily Walzer on an array of topics.

Kelly Davis

Snow Sports Industries of America’s Kelly Davis talks weather, participation trends and how to handle the psyche.

Kevin Davis

The CEO of Performance Sports Group dishes on new bat standards and Own the Moment.

Gene McCarthy, Pt 2

Gene McCarthy, president of Asics America, speaks to Jen Ernst Beaudry on specialty run and more in the second part of the podcast.

Gene McCarthy, Pt 1

Gene McCarthy, new president of Asics Americas, dishes to F4M’s Jen Ernst Beaudry in the first of a two-part podcast.

Richie Woodworth

Saucony’s Richie Woodworth offers his views on brand’s running business and what it takes to manage through change.

Bruce Cazenave

Bruce Cazenave, CEO of Nautilus Inc., recently ranked 23rd on Fortune’s “Fastest Growing Companies” list.

Tony Armand

Armand is leading USB, created after the April merger of Shock Doctor and McDavid.

Gary Smith

Gary Smith has been at the helm of the Lawrence, MA firm for three years, and his 2016 strategies will broaden Polartec’s scope.

Marty Hanaka

City Sports CEO Marty Hanaka has 42 years in retail, starting at Sears in 1973.

Mike Dowse

Wilson Sporting Goods, one year removed from its 100th anniversary and a major restructuring, has a renewed focus and strategy.