Footwear Insight

6 • Footwear Insight ~ September/October 2024 footwearinsight.com C anadian apparel brand Lolë, known for its athleisure, active and outerwear offerings, has acquired outdoor lifestyle footwear brand Sanuk from Deckers Brands. Founded in 1997, the SoCal, surf-inspired Sanuk brand was acquired by Deckers in 2011. e brand saw a net sales decrease in the most recent quarter for Deckers. Terms of the sale to Lolë were not disclosed. Katie Pruitt, who has been with Sanuk for over a decade, will stay with the brand as Vice President, General Manager of Sanuk. Pruitt will focus on evolving the brand strategy and prioritizing direct-to-consum- er and wholesale customers to drive innovation and growth. In the coming months, Sanuk will relocate its operations and open a new office in Los Angeles, CA. "Sanuk is iconic for its dis- ruptive spirit and loyal fanbase, and we're pleased to welcome the brand to the Lolë family," says Todd Steele, Lolë CEO. "We look forward to working along- side Katie and leveraging Lolë's resources and partnerships to embark on a new stage of growth for the brand." n E leven weeks after lowering its FY25 outlook and 11 days before officially reporting its Q1 results on Oct. 1, Nike made a senior executive change by hiring its fih-ever CEO. Elliott Hill, a 32-year Nike veteran who retired in 2020 as president of consumer and marketplace, is returning to the company as president and CEO on Oct. 14. He will replace John Donahoe, the former PayPal chairman who is retiring from his Nike senior positions as president and CEO but will remain an advisor to the company through Jan. 31, 2025. During its late June conference call for FY24 and Q4 results, Donahoe told analysts that Nike was "moving aggressively" to re-establish its innovation edge and would unveil several new concepts in December and establish a focus on the retro running segment as it aimed to triple that business over the next year from new style executions. During the same session, Nike revised its FY outlook by projecting a mid-single digit annual revenue drop that included expectations of a high-single digit sales decline for the first six months that ends in November. Lower classic footwear sales, shiing consumer demand, macro- economic challenges and soer digital sales were contributing factors to the changed expectations. e news of Hill's appointment as Nike chief garnered immediate favorable reviews from analysts for his knowledge of the industry, favorable relationships with retailers and keen grasp of Nike culture. But he will likely face some immediate headwinds in the months ahead in his efforts to turn around Nike's fortunes, according to industry analyst Matt Powell, the Spurwink River advisor. Any impact by Hill's hiring on a Nike turnaround will probably take upwards of 18 months before significant product and brand changes are noticeable, according to analysts, and that could spell a rough road for the brand until 2026. Besides increased competition, the company is also being challenged by persistent challenges in the direct-to-consumer and wholesale channels and revenue pressures on its business in China. — Bob McGee Sanuk Acquired by Lolë Brands Nike Makes Change at Top, Elliott Hill Is New President/CEO NEW OWNER EXEC NEWS THE FOOTWEAR EYE

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