Sanuk President Jake Brandman called SES from the Outdoor Retailer show to provide us with some interesting brand updates.
One involves a new men’s ambassador and the other a top executive departure.
Jake also provided some context about Sanuk’s most recent quarterly results, where revenue declined 7%.
New ambassador
Australian surfer, musician and artist Ozzie Wright is the newest Sanuk team rider. Ozzie is “fun, fearless and playful like the brand,” Jake said.
Other Sanuk men’s ambassadors include Dave Rastovich, Albee Layer, Matt Meola and Donavon Frankenreiter.
Departing executive
Well-regarded sales executive Jeff Fitzhugh is departing Sanuk, Jake said. Jeff, the VP of Sales for North America, joined Sanuk in 2013 from DC.
Jake said the separation is amicable and Sanuk is grateful for what Jeff accomplished during his tenure, including building a strong sales team.
I have a call into Jeff to see what he is doing next.
Challenges at the core
On an earnings conference call last week, Deckers Brands executives said Sanuk sales fell in the quarter due to challenges in the core channel.
Jake said the problem is the footwear category overall in the core channel, which was the weakest category at core stores in the first half of the year. Because of the challenges in the category, Sanuk was not able to hit its financial plan for the core.
However, Sanuk showed market share gains in every category it competes in Jake said, citing ActionWatch data, including men’s and women’s sandals and footwear. New collaboration
Sanuk has a new collaboration just for core retailers debuting in March with Stone Brewing for an updated Beer Cozy sandal style.
Expect more “seasonal brews” from the collaboration in the future, Jake said.
Sanuk Women’s update
The top selling Yoga Sling and Yoga series will be updated for Spring’16, including with a new premium collection with elevated materials and styling.
Sanuk has also expanded its relationship with Wanderlust, the yoga event and festival devoted to mindful living. The goal is to connect with a relevant sandal customer who has not found Sanuk yet. Sanuk’s women ambassadors are getting involved with the event, which Jake described as “a playful escape for Sanuk’s target female customer.”
The new lead in Sanuk’s women program is surfer, writer and activist Lauren Hill, the girlfriend of Dave Rastovich.
Jake said Lauren is a perfect fit for the brand and where it is going, especially as Sanuk expands and updates its yoga collection.
