Running Insight

former Puma executive who is National Sales Manager for Diadora in the U.S. Poerner promises a clean distribution for the brand's high-end Blu Shield running shoes made up primarily of the best running stores in the country. More significantly, he will not sell The T1 Run Silo product to big box stores, mall retailers, Amazon or other major web retailers. Rather, Diadora will limit Internet sales of the high end running shoes to its own website and will share 20% of that revenue with its top running store accounts. "There is a lot of great product in the market place and we believe ours stands up to anyone's," Poerner said, "but what will set us apart are our policies and programs that support run specialty stores." "Running stores are on the front line talking to consumers every day and building brands with education and by offering a great experience. We want our brand and our running stores to build relationships with the same consumer and it will be easier for running stores to do that if they know we are standing behind them." Poerner likes to tell the story of buying a Yeti cooler and having a great experience at the local outdoor store where he bought it. "When I got home, there was a postcard in the cooler letting me know how I could go online and buy more Yeti gear and accessories. Rather than encourage me to go back to the store, they were sending me to their own website. We want to respect the relationship that running stores have with their customers and be part of that. We don't want to circumvent that. We'd like run stores to think of us as their 'house' brand." Although many of these policies represent a new start for Diadora in the United States, there will be some continuity to the brand's past heritage in running. Gelindo Bordin has been the Merchandising & Sport Marketing Director for Diadora for almost 20 years. Bordin is best known as the only male athlete to have won both the Boston Marathon and an Olympic gold medal in the marathon in 1988. In an e-mail exchange with Running Insight, Bordin said his goal with product is to help deliver "performance, quality and style the key values for its sporting and lifestyle goods especially in running, soccer, tennis, fashion and style." The brand will continue to produce those other categories of product, Poerner says, and will segment their retail distribution according to price so it will not interfere with the run specialty strategy. The brand will continue to produce those other categories of product, Poerner says, and will segment their retail distribution according to price so it will not interfere with the run specialty strategy. n Diadora Eyes Running (continued) Getting to Know Gelindo Born in Vicenza, Gelindo Bordin made his first breakthrough at the 1986 European Championships, where he won a gold medal. His next international competition was at the 1987 World Championships in Rome. The marathon race was held on a very hot and humid day, and Bordin wisely held back from the leaders in the early stages. He caught up the leaders after the 35k mark and finally settled to third place. At the Olympic marathon in Seoul, Bordin stayed with the leaders from the start, and after 25 km (16 mi) the leading pack started losing contact one by one, and with 5 km (3.1 mi) remaining, only three runners remained: Bordin, Douglas Wakiihuri from Kenya and Hussein Ahmed Salah from Djibouti. With 3 km (1.9 mi) to go, Salah and Wakiihuri sprinted forward, and Bordin passed them with 1 km (0.62 mi) to go to win the gold medal. Bordin successfully defended his European marathon title in 1990, becoming the first man to win the title twice. Bordin decided to retire shortly after the 1992 Olympic Games, after having to interrupt the race due to a strained muscle. Bordin has been a consultant, and later sport merchandising and marketing director for the Italian sportswear brand Diadora. He has been the main promoter behind the company's latest endeavor - Diadora Academy. The idea of the Academy stems from the will to not only search for young talent, but also to help it grow and reach its full potential. Side by Side with Bordin on this project are consultants, and former athletics champion, Salvatore Bettiol, and Italian athletics star Daniele Meucci. 4 runninginsight.com © 2017 Formula4media LLC. Bryan Poerner, National Sales Manager, Diadora "Running stores are on the front line talking to consumers every day and building brands with education and by offering a great experience. BRYAN POERNER, DIADORA

• Cover