David Ortiz Steps up to the Plate for SKECHERS
Famed Baseball Slugger to Appear in Global Men’s Footwear Campaign
MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- SKECHERS (NYSE:SKX) expands its roster of sports stars representing the brand by announcing that ten-time All-Star Dominican-American baseball slugger David Ortiz—known by fans around the world as “Big Papi”—will be lacing up in SKECHERS Men’s footwear for a multi-platform global marketing campaign set to launch this Fall.
Baseball slugger David Ortiz signs on with Skechers (Photo: Business Wire)
“Twenty seasons in the majors took its toll on my body and especially my feet,” said David Ortiz. “While I knew I’d miss things about the game, I’m definitely able to enjoy my retirement in comfort thanks to my new partnership with SKECHERS. Toward the end of my career it felt like I was playing on two stubs, but now these SKECHERS have me feeling like I’m walking on the clouds!”
“We’re thrilled to have Big Papi joining Team SKECHERS and bringing with him the personality, heart and passion loved by baseball fans everywhere,” added Michael Greenberg, president of SKECHERS. “David represents a perfect fit for our athletic and casual Men’s footwear collections. The respect he garners will be a home run for SKECHERS. And with a fanbase beyond the United States, especially across the Americas, he’ll help us build awareness around the globe.”
Known primarily for his roles as a designated hitter and first baseman for 14 seasons in Boston, David Ortiz joined the pros in 1992 and previously played for Seattle and Minnesota. In Boston, he played for the team that broke the curse in 2004 and won the World Series two more times—in 2007 plus 2013 when he was also named series MVP. Ortiz is one of the most powerful sluggers in baseball history—a seven-time Silver Slugger winner who holds Boston’s single-season home run record of 54 set in 2006. He ended his career with 541 home runs (17th all-time), 1,768 RBIs (22nd all-time) and a .286 batting average. Ortiz remains the all-time leader as designated hitter for home runs, RBIs and hits.
Since retiring, he’s been focused on his charity—the David Ortiz Children’s Fund—which is committed to helping children in New England and the Dominican Republic who do not have access to the critical pediatric services they need. Ortiz will share insight from his life and career with the world when his anticipated memoir Papi: My Story releases in hardcover on May 16.
Along with boxer Sugar Ray Leonard and football legends Joe Montana and Howie Long, who all appear in current SKECHERS footwear campaigns, SKECHERS has a long history working with athletes to represent its Men’s collection. Our extended roster of sports icons includes Pete Rose, Mariano Rivera, Ozzie Smith, Tommy Lasorda, Joe Namath, Ronnie Lott, Karl Malone, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Rick Fox, and Wayne Gretzky.
In recent years, the range of SKECHERS men’s footwear has expanded to include a wide array of trend-right casual and sport styles, and innovations such as SKECHERS Air-Cooled Memory Foam for long-lasting comfort. Styles from the SKECHERS men’s collection are available in SKECHERS retail stores as well as department stores and footwear retailers around the globe.
About SKECHERS USA, Inc.
SKECHERS USA, Inc., 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 and over 160 countries and territories worldwide via department and specialty stores, more than 2,055 SKECHERS Company-owned and third-party-owned retail stores, and the Company’s e-commerce websites. The Company manages its international business through a network of global distributors, joint venture partners in Asia and the Middle East, and wholly-owned subsidiaries in Canada, Japan, throughout Europe and Latin America. 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 domestic and international growth, financial results and operations including expected net sales and earnings, its development of new products, future demand for its products, its planned domestic and international expansion, opening of new stores and additional expenditures, and 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 international economic, political and market conditions including the uncertainty of sustained recovery in Europe; 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, especially in the highly competitive performance footwear market; 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, 2016. 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
Jennifer Clay, 310-937-1326
jennc@skechers.com
Source: SKECHERS USA, Inc.
Released May 3, 2017 • 9:00 am EDT