Nike Sells Bauer, Never Again for Inline!

[zipyaj]

I just read the New York Times article Hockey Fan, and Investor, Buys Bauer From Nike published earlier today where it's reported that investor W. Graeme Roustan has acquired the Bauer operation from Nike for $200 million.

The article cites:
As for inline hockey, Mr. Roustan suggested that Bauer would never again chase that elusive market. “I really didn’t understand the inline skating business, being a blade guy,” he said.

Read for yourself... http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/22/bu...ss&oref=slogin

Wanna buy some stock in Bauer?

[RichardGraham]

"But inline hockey did not develop as anticipated. More important, Nike learned that performance was more important than styling flair in hockey gear."

Some geniuses at Nike, eh?

[zipyaj]

Genious runs amuck, eh?

Let's see... based on some of what I've read, Nike acquired Canstar Sports Inc., which included the Bauer brand, in 1995 for $395 million. At the time interest in hockey and in-line skating was surging.

The market later softened. (oops!)

In November '07, following Nike's announcement that the Nike Bauer unit was for sale, would-be buyers, including hockey legends Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky, major competitors, private equity firms and investor groups, formally expressed interest in buying Nike Bauer Hockey. Nike Bauer set a steep price tag for the subsidiary expected to be in the $250-million range. (so what's a mere $145 million loss to Nike so far anyway?) The price drove off most parties including hockey manufacturers Easton-Bell Sports and Mission-Itech, who left the room when the price climbed north of $200-million. According to one insider, "The market would have said $140-million on the low side, and on the high side maybe $175-million tops."

"It was too rich for them," he said, noting that growth prospects remain weak, particularly in the tough U.S. market, and competition is fierce.

Enter new suitor, W. Graeme Roustan, who lays down $200 million for the ailing unit.

I'm thinking that Nike is saying Hooray! (sucker...)

Roustan, who grew up with hand-me-down Bauer hockey skates in Canada, then skates off to the press with a hole shot of a business strategy statement suggesting that as a "blade guy" he'll pull out of the inline hockey business.

Hmmm... soft market, declining shares, and then cut out the inline segment. This is a business growth or profit strategy?

This seems to me that something in the logic chain got cut here faster than Zednick went to the ice and with even more blood to follow. (sorry for the pun to Panther Richard Zednick and glad he's recovering).

Dollars and sense?

When will they (the hockey industry at large) learn to expand outside of the circle and stop marketing only to the same group of core consumers over and over fighting for declining market share when they could be expanding markets and the future of the sport by helping to attract new skating consumers through Learn To Skate programs, low point of entry cost hockey gear and even rental gear programs that rink operators or communities could afford?

Let's get some new, young blood onto those rinks and see the sport regain interest and revenues.

I've only get cents, but if I had the dollars, I would.

C'mon lotto!

[RichardGraham]

Hmmm... and how about some of the companies that you mentioned advertising on Inline Hockey Central, which reaches thousands of new inline hockey players every year?

[ACCCT2]

Just a few pertinent thoughts on this news --

Might I suggest a consumer strategy to remind the new owner of Bauer (and for that matter the present owners of RBK-CCM, Mission-Itech and Easton-Bell) just exactly the kind of "impact" that inline hockey players and its supporters have on their bottom lines --

BOYCOTT: ALL Bauer (and Nike, for good riddence) hockey gear and goods across the board. Inline hockey is a HUGE ice hockey "entry point" for especially young beginning players. If the new owner doesn't "understand" our impact on his bottom line, well then, let's all band together and shrink his market share even more: DON'T GIVE YOUR MONEY to ANY company that takes your business for granted or treats you and your passion as a carpet-bagged afterthought. This includes NOT buying any Bauer (or Nike) ice hockey gear, goods, sticks or ice skakes.

ACCOUNTABILITY: It's time to ask and demand where the NGB's are and have been in allowing, and more importantly, being a key reason why the sport is in decline. USA Hockey-InLIne sure took Nike-Bauer's sponsor cash quite freely (and did what with it?) -- what did they do to earn it? I say it's now time to TAKE BACK OUR GAME from these do-nothing organizations.

SUPPORT $UPPORTERS: Conversely, it's time to DEMONSTRATE FULL and MEANINGFULL $UPPORT of ONLY those companies, sponsors, events, forums and websites that $upport our sport. The companies that INVEST into our sport quite frankly are the ONLY companies that should see profit off of it. So NO MORE of say, Misson's arrogant "We'll find you" routine brush-off answer to sponsorship or event support inquiries. Make these companies INVEST in OUR sport and EARN our brand loyalty and hard-earned cash.

WAKE UP CALL: WAKE-UP, PEOPLE -- a brand like Nike leaving our sport is a SERIOUS DOWNER and harbinger of things to come, as Nike very rarely ever gets it wrong or blows it (its investment in the then-hot game of ice and inline hockey being its only major defeat). If we don't wake-up and smell the coffee (if not the house burning down around us?), we're headed for a totally meaningless status as a sport.

And further, on this rather serious note, I believe it's time to call a spade a spade as far as the game's relationship with our 'ice' partner, as the NHL and 'ice' boys CLEARLY DON'T KNOW or have any clue about how to $ell even themselves and ALSO are in SERIOUS TROUBLE marketing-wise (and have been for a few years now), it's well past due that we 'divorce' ourselves from NHL and 'ice' associations of virtually any kind. Otherwise we'll SURELY GO DOWN with THEIR SINKING SHIP (and make no mistake people, it IS SINKING). I say lets follow the BIGGEST "RAT" of all (Nike) OFF of the 'ice' hockey ship. But instead of giving up on traveling somewhere hidden away in some dark and dreary 'hold' waiting for scraps and crumbs to be dropped in the near vicinity, let's build our own airtight luxury-liner of a vehichle to move OUR sport wherever WE want it to go!

Sorry about my 'formatting-relapse', but I think that 'emphasis' is needed here...!!!

Just a thought or two or three from an old fart (who might know something about how this could pan out sport and marketing-wise).

[PGHhockey]

Keep in mind that Nike purchased Umbro not long ago, so I can only imagine that Nike sees larger market growth potential in soccer than hockey.

I agree with the guy that said LTP programs should be a focus of growth strategy for all inline hockey merchants (including USA Hockey, AAU, Rbk/CCM, Mission, Tour, and individual rinks). I remember reading research done a while back that showed that one of parents' primary concerns with getting kids started in hockey is the cost of equipment and ice time. These are both drastically reduced on the inline side of things.

And, let's face it - when Rbk landed Crosby and Ovechkin, they grabbed the 2 biggest up-and-coming stars in the league, as well as the 2 players most looked-up-to by youngsters. Had Nike/Bauer snagged one (or both) of them, we could have seen a different story.

Give credit where it's due - Rbk has really taken off with their branding & marketing campaigns.

[zipyaj]

Great Points! And thanks for contributing.

I'd like to also give some kudos to Mission Itech in this thread and with relevance to the bottom of the pyramid...

I visited the WCRHL Regional Championship Tournament this past weekend in Irvine, CA and witnessed not only some great collegiate play, but also a super new program for kids - the Mission Hockey College.

Sponsored by Mission Hockey, the "college" was a free, one hour clinic run by college players open to kids of all skill levels, including learn-to-skate and goalies, between the ages of 5-15.

The turnout for the free clinic took two rinks to accommodate the load and split the 10 & unders from their elder peers. There were even some special needs children present for instruction, and I observed Mission's Dave Reskey working closely along with the college players making sure that each player on the surface was given attention.

I was amazed to see all those happy smiles, especially when Reskey gave them each a cool, black school backpack emblazed with the neon green Mission logo when exiting the rinks.

What a great way for the college players to give back to the younger players of the sport, and for Mission's sponsorship at the youth level. Kudos to them all!

What's next? Hockey High School? Taking the scholastic teams into the school yards maybe?

If Bauer's Roustan being a blade guy had seen those smiles and the working mechanics of a good, inline promotion, I think he might just be mounting some wheels to those boots, eh?

[longboarderj]

My son went to the Mission clinic at 949 and he loved it. At seven years old he got to skate with the college players that he looks up to, got a free backpack which he has taken to school every day. He told his friend about this and I have gotten five or six calls from their parnets asking how they can get their kids into inline hockey. This is the kind of thing that Nike/Bauer shoulod think about. I play ice and roller and the only skates I wear are bauers, I am disappointed with this attitude that inline hockey does not matter. For some kids inline is their only chance to play!!

[Mtour71]

Mission does a wonderful job in getting the youth involved...Tour does as well. To me the only two companies in ROLLER HOCKEY are Mission and Tour. These are two unbelievable companies that ROLLER people should be supporting. Companies like NikE, Bauer, CCM, Easton, and RBK all make descent stuff(Especially in ice)...BUT...They are in and out of Roller Hockey and aren't in it for the long run. At least you can say that Mission and Tour have been in the game since the early days. So when you go out and buy a new product for yourself or maybe a child I would definitely recommend Tour or Mission.

Does Nike, Bauer, CCM, Easton, or RBK sponsor Roller Hockey events? All I see at National Events are Tour and Mission. Warrior has been at State Wars....(and the wheel sponsors are at every tournament))

[ACCCT2]

Mission does a wonderful job in getting the youth involved...Tour does as well. To me the only two companies in ROLLER HOCKEY are Mission and Tour. These are two unbelievable companies that ROLLER people should be supporting. Companies like NikE, Bauer, CCM, Easton, and RBK all make descent stuff(Especially in ice)...BUT...They are in and out of Roller Hockey and aren't in it for the long run. At least you can say that Mission and Tour have been in the game since the early days. So when you go out and buy a new product for yourself or maybe a child I would definitely recommend Tour or Mission.

Does Nike, Bauer, CCM, Easton, or RBK sponsor Roller Hockey events? All I see at National Events are Tour and Mission. Warrior has been at State Wars....(and the wheel sponsors are at every tournament))

Nike, Bauer, CCM, Easton and RBK (as well Mission and Tour) ALL want our money, but are evidently sure that they don't have to "support" anything to get it. I say, let our considerable numbers and buying-power speak volumes on ALL their their "carpet-bagging" bottom lines.

And personally, I wouldn't give either Mission or Tour too much credit where it isn't due, as they don't really "support" that much more than the other companies do within our sport -- and again, I say make them also realize who their "market-share" really is.

[Mtour71]

I agree that they all want our money..Sure, that's the business side of things..But I highly disagree with you in the other ways. All of those companies listed, don't put up great numbers in Roller Hockey. Mission is the leader in Roller Hockey while Tour is in second. All thats a fact! A company like Mission who is already the leader in the ROLLER still goes to all the events and supports them 100%...All the way from NARCh/State Wars/2 Hot for Ice/College/IHHF World Team...Tour used to be apart of TPC until they went down. But they are involved in NARCh/State Wars/Torhs/AAU/FIRS Team Usa. It keeps going. What other companies are you comparing them too in our sport? Wheel companies? All the big time events charge more for the bigger companies. There should be no reason why the smaller companies shouldn't be involved in the big time events.

[ACCCT2]

I agree that they all want our money..Sure, that's the business side of things..

Truth of the matter is, unlike other businesses, even "niche" businesses, inline hockey manufacturers do even proportionately almost nothing to 'win' consumer brand loyalty -- they ALL count on our business without 'wooing' it in any way whatsoever.

But I highly disagree with you in the other ways. All of those companies listed, don't put up great numbers in Roller Hockey.

Classically, if a business puts up ANY numbers within a specific market and/or demographic, they support (as in cash-driven advertising/sponsorship/media marketing support) the grass-roots and premier entities within their "niche" -- personally, from my ad-biz point of view I don't see this and certainly not on a "proportional" level. Heck, these companies can't even be bothered (or are too cheap or sure of our business?) to even place an ad on IHC, a central 'vehicle-venue' that their brands, products and "PR" gets (in MY mind, anyway) WAY TOO MUCH "free" play. Why? Because they absolutely take us, IHC and ALL of our consumer-cash and attention that "we" collectively represent for granted.

Mission is the leader in Roller Hockey while Tour is in second. All thats a fact! A company like Mission who is already the leader in the ROLLER still goes to all the events and supports them 100%...All the way from NARCh/State Wars/2 Hot for Ice/College/IHHF World Team...

Where on earth do you get your alleged "facts"? Industry numbers defintely don't back up your assertions at all. And define "100%", as simply seeing a manufacturer's signs or logos at an event means absolutely nothing if there's not substantial cash or swag or ad/media sponsorship "support" of the event. And THAT, mon ami, is a "fact".

Tour used to be apart of TPC until they went down. But they are involved in NARCh/State Wars/Torhs/AAU/FIRS Team Usa. It keeps going. What other companies are you comparing them too in our sport? Wheel companies? All the big time events charge more for the bigger companies. There should be no reason why the smaller companies shouldn't be involved in the big time events.

Why do you think TPC "went down"? Defined "involved" (that is, if you actually know -- especially with CASH ad/media "sponsorship" being the 'definition' of "involved"). If the "bigger companies" aren't even (CASH-ad/media "sponsorship") "supporting" the "big time events" then why on earth would you think the the "smaller companies" would? GEEZ, how much do even the "bigger companies" pay IHC to list or announce their allegedly "sponsored" events and money-making operations here on IHC? Hmmm...could that be NOTHING? Why? Because basically they ALL take ALL of us and our collective abilities to generate cash for THEM for granted, that's why.

[Mtour71]

Just because you use big words, does not mean that you know what you are talking about. I work in the industry. I've seen the numbers and I know the numbers. I'm really not one to argue over a message board. However...

I was skeptical at first, but now have realized that you have absolutely no idea what you are talking about.

Lets take a step back here. Mission is a sponsor of Narch, State Wars, 2Hot4Ice, the NCRHA, And the IIHF National Team. Tour is a sponsor of Narch, State Wars, Torhs, AAU, and the FIRS National Team. Without the sponsorship dollars of these companies, these tournaments DO NOT TAKE PLACE. Tour and Mission are the two largest sponsors of Narch. and to correspond with their dollars spent in advertising and sponsorship, 90% of the skates, pants, and gloves worn at the largest roller hockey tournament in the world are made by either Mission or Tour. If you don't believe me, take the trip to San Jose this summer.

Mission Hockey College. A free clinic to kids during last years Nationals and this years West Coast College Regionals. The kids had to show up, learn a few tips and tricks from some of the west coast's best, and just for being a part of the sport and the clinic, Mission gives them a backpack. With no immediate gain, Mission was involved in this clinic trying to be a part of the future of the sport. Who would've thought...

Take a look at Saint Louis. Tour has had roots in Saint Louis inline hockey for well over a decade now. I will tell you as an out of towner that during any given game (house, PIHA, or travel) that nearly every pair of skates on the floor is made by Tour. I'd say that the dollars spent sponsoring the TOUR Christmas Cup, Narch, State Wars, Torhs, etc. was money well spent in the midwest.

So why should Mission or Tour have to win your support? They shouldn't. Just because they don't advertise on a message board doesn't mean they don't care. The people at these companies play/coach too. Most of them have made lifetime friends through their INVOLVEMENT and PRESENCE at tournaments, events, tradeshows, etc. Sure, its a business. Mission and Tour are the leaders in the sport. How you figure they need to earn your support? I have no idea. I guess if you don't like it, cease whatever INVOLVEMENT you have with the sport. Its probably better for both parties.

[Mtour71]

by the way...

How's that lawsuit against USA Hockey coming along? Ya know, the one you've been building for 25 years?

[alex]

by the way...

How's that lawsuit against USA Hockey coming along? Ya know, the one you've been building for 25 years?

Haha OH DAMN. You've done it now!

Prepare for long-winded lecture on how daft you are to assume something isn't going on just because YOU are not privy to the details.