Archive for the ‘SG Industry News’ Category
Golf Balls and the Rules of Golf
April 24th, 2012 by sourcedNo one has ever accused golf of being a lawless society. Indeed, one of the tenets of the game is that the players police themselves. It is up to each golfer to determine when a rule has been broken, and at other times it is a matter of conscience. If you took two swipes to get the ball out of the woods, the proper thing to do is confess to two strokes, not one — even if no one could see you behind the trees. And throwing the ball out of the woods instead is definitely frowned upon. You can’t throw it that far anyway (I mean, or so I’ve heard).
As people are fond of saying: golf is a game of integrity.
But what if the notion of policing ourselves is itself a transient, unfixed golf principle? Who actually makes up the rules, especially if we are policing ourselves?
Bill Pennington at the Ny Times notes the Polara Golf Ball as a nonconforming, against the rules Ball that has gone mainstream, generating over $3M in sales. Also, interesting that some retailers are asking for more nonconforming golf products. Read the rest of the article at NYTimes.com.
Wahlberg and GNC Team Up on New MARKED Sports Nutrition Line
April 19th, 2012 by sourcedPR Web: GNC, the nation’s largest specialty retailer of health and wellness products, is proud to announce a partnership with Academy Award-nominated actor/producer Mark Wahlberg to develop, market and sell MARKED, a new nutritional supplement line designed to meet the demanding lifestyles of active, results-driven fitness consumers who want to get the most out of their workout and improve overall health.
“I’m excited to join forces with GNC, a brand I trust for quality and integrity, to develop the MARKED products,” said Mark Wahlberg. “I attribute much of my own success to my dedication to living healthy and fit, so it is important for me to create products that will help motivate others to pursue their own personal wellness goals.”
The MARKED line – consisting of seven sports and active nutrition products – was designed by leading GNC scientists and wellness experts in partnership with Wahlberg. The products are free of banned substances and are based on cutting edge nutritional science and the highest quality ingredients to deliver optimal performance and results.
“I have known Mark for several years and during that time period I have been impressed by Mark’s continued personal efforts in regards to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. GNC and Mark share a strong mutual passion for helping people improve their quality of life through proper exercise, diet and supplementation. I have seen Mark repetitively reinforce this message in his everyday life and could not be more pleased that together we are undertaking this initiative, as it is a perfect alignment with our customer base,” said Joe Fortunato, President and CEO. “This also represents a unique strategy for us as we introduce this comprehensive line of leading nutritional products that will be available through various channels of distribution in the U.S. and overseas.”
MARKED will launch in GNC stores and on GNC.com, and is expected to be widely available through other leading retailers. A portion of all sales are being donated to the Mark Wahlberg Youth Foundation, whose mission is to improve the quality of life for inner city youth.
“Our new partnership with Mark Wahlberg is a natural fit given our shared commitment to ‘living well’,” said Tom Dowd, EVP, Chief Merchandising Officer and General Manager. “We are pleased that MARKED will also help contribute to a great resource for inner city youth and look forward to growing this brand with the combined marketing resources of GNC and Mark Wahlberg behind it.”
As part of this partnership, Wahlberg will serve as the leading brand ambassador and will drive the marketing approach for the MARKED product line. Wahlberg will also appear at GNC stores at various locations across the U.S. throughout 2012. More information about MARKED and further details on the MARKED launch, product line and availability will be available in the coming months.
Callaway sells Top-Flite to Dick’s SG
April 12th, 2012 by sourced“At one time Top-Flite enjoyed one of the largest market shares in the golf ball category. Today, the brand was sold by Callaway Golf to Dick’s Sporting Goods for $20 million in cash, according to an 8-K filing. Included in the 8-K filing is this statement: “The net effect of the sale of these brands, including the gain recognized, is not expected to have a material effect on the Company’s net income for 2012.” In 2003 Callaway purchased Top-Flite Golf (which, at the time, was comprised of the Top-Flite, Strata and Ben Hogan brands) for $125 million through a pre-packaged bankruptcy agreement. Callaway sold off the Hogan brand to Perry Ellis earlier this year.”
Read More of this article at: Golfdigest.com
Nike Unveils New NFL Uniforms
April 10th, 2012 by sourced“Nike Inc. (NKE) unveiled its new National Football League uniforms today, skipping the duck-wing and lizard-skin prints that it put on some college teams. The world’s largest sporting-goods provider stuck mainly to the 92-year-old NFL’s traditional look as it begins a five-year licensing deal that may add $500 million in annual revenue, according to Chris Svezia, an analyst for Susquehanna Financial Group in New York.”
Read the rest of this article at Bloomberg.com.
Gander Mountain Plans Smaller Stores
March 26th, 2012 by sourced“Gander Mountain Co. on Wednesday announced plans to open a new retail store in Valdosta, Ga. The St. Paul-based outdoor sporting goods retailer has 114 stores in 23 states. The last time it entered a new market was 2009, when it opened in Sprinfield, Ill. Its most recent new store to open in an existing Gander Mountain market was in Onalaska, Wis., which opened 11 months ago. The new 52,000-square-foot Valdosta store is expected to be a model for future Gander Mountain stores in small-to-mid-size markets across the country.”
Read the rest of the article at www.bizjournals.com.