Pete Rose Steps Up to the Plate for SKECHERS
Baseball Great Signs on to Appear in Relaxed Fit® Footwear Campaign
MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- SKECHERS USA, Inc. (NYSE:SKX), recently called “the hottest major brand in the U.S.” by Princeton Retail Analysis*, today announced that it has signed legendary baseball great Pete Rose to join the team representing the successful men’s Relaxed Fit® from SKECHERS footwear line. A new advertising campaign featuring Rose will begin in Fall 2014.
Baseball legend Pete Rose (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Pete Rose’s campaign launches with a new television commercial utilizing the same humorous tone as previous spots for Relaxed Fit footwear starring Joe Montana and Mark Cuban, as well as an upcoming spot with Joe Namath. The campaign will extend across all media with Rose appearing in print, outdoor, online and point-of-sale materials through 2015.
“I’ve loved these super comfortable Relaxed Fit shoes from the moment I first tried on a pair, so it makes perfect sense now that I’m working with SKECHERS,” said Pete Rose. “I can’t wait until everyone sees what we have planned. I know I’m in great company with the roster of legends that have worked on this campaign.”
“Our Relaxed Fit from SKECHERS campaign has been so successful because fans love seeing sports icons off the field,” added Michael Greenberg, president of SKECHERS. “We’re thrilled to bring Pete Rose on board and have a fantastic concept that plays to his unmatched talent and of course his notoriety as well. Pete will help drive the message that our comfortable footwear is the ideal way to help you stay relaxed in any situation.”
Rose spent the majority of his 26-year baseball career playing for and later managing the Cincinnati Reds. He still holds the all-time MLB records for hits (4,256), games played (3,562), at-bats (14,053), and singles (3,215). Rose passed the 200 hits mark in 10 different seasons and led the National League in hits seven times. Beyond the numerous records, Rose’s achievements include three World Series championships, three batting titles, an MVP award, two Gold Gloves awards, Rookie of the Year, and 17 All-Star appearances while playing five different positions (2B, LF, RF, 3B, 1B). Rose was named in 1999 as an outfielder to the MLB All-Century team that recognized the 100 greatest players of the past hundred years.
Relaxed Fit from SKECHERS footwear offers fashionable appeal with a spacious design that features a roomier fit, a unique Skechers Memory Foam footbed and instant comfort. The men’s footwear line is available in SKECHERS retail stores as well as department and footwear stores around the globe.
SKECHERS has a long history working with sports icons over the years. Advertising campaigns for the brand have also featured Meb Keflezighi, Wayne Gretzky, Karl Malone, Evander Holyfield, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Rick Fox, and Ronnie Lott.
*Matt Powell, April 2014 Footwear Overview
About SKECHERS USA, Inc.
SKECHERS USA, Inc. (NYSE:SKX), based in Manhattan Beach, California, designs, develops and markets a diverse range of lifestyle footwear for men, women and children, as well as performance footwear for men and women. SKECHERS footwear is available in the United States via department and specialty stores, Company-owned SKECHERS retail stores and its e-commerce website, and in over 100 countries and territories through the Company’s international network of subsidiaries in Canada, Brazil, Chile, Japan, and across Europe, as well as through joint ventures in Asia and distributors around the world. For more information, please visit skechers.com, and follow us on Facebook (facebook.com/SKECHERS) and Twitter (twitter.com/SKECHERSUSA).
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the Company’s future growth, financial results and operations, its development of new products, future demand for its products and growth opportunities, and its planned opening of new stores, advertising and marketing initiatives. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking language such as “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will result,” “could,” “may,” “might,” or any variations of such words with similar meanings. Any such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences include the resignation of the Company’s former independent registered public accounting firm, and its withdrawal of its audit reports with respect to certain of the Company’s historical financial statements; international, national and local general economic, political and market conditions including the ongoing global economic slowdown and market instability; consumer preferences and rapid changes in technology in the highly competitive performance footwear market; sustaining, managing and forecasting costs and proper inventory levels; losing any significant customers, decreased demand by industry retailers and cancellation of order commitments due to the lack of popularity of particular designs and/or categories of products; maintaining brand image and intense competition among sellers of footwear for consumers; anticipating, identifying, interpreting or forecasting changes in fashion trends, consumer demand for the products and the various market factors described above; sales levels during the spring, back-to-school and holiday selling seasons; and other factors referenced or incorporated by reference in the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013 and its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended March 31, 2014. The risks included here are not exhaustive. The Company operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and the companies cannot predict all such risk factors, nor can the companies assess the impact of all such risk factors on their respective businesses or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Moreover, reported results should not be considered an indication of future performance.
SKECHERS USA, Inc.
Jennifer Clay, 310-937-1326
Source: SKECHERS USA, Inc.
Released May 21, 2014 • 10:43 am EDT