New Zealand’s Kathmandu Holdings announced the reshuffling of several senior management positions, as the outdoorwear brand completes its acquisition of surfwear brand RipCurl.
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Finalising the takeover on 31 October 2019, Kathmandu Holdings, the owner of Kathmandu and Oboz brands, revealed that Xavier Simonet will continue as group chief
executive officer of Kathmandu Holdings, which now includes the Rip Curl business.
The group said that Chris Kinraid will stay on as the group’s chief financial officer, while Reuben Casey, currently chief operating officer, has been appointed chief executive officer of the Kathmandu brand.
Following the takeover, Michael Daly will continue on as chief executive officer for RipCurl. The senior appointments will take effect November, said Kathmandu Holdings. Casey, Kinraid and Daly will report to Xavier Simonet as the group chief executive officer. The company has determined that Simonet and Kinraid will be classified as the “senior managers” of the company, it added.
“Reuben has been a key contributor to the success of Kathmandu over the last few years. I congratulate him on his promotion and I wish him all the very best success as chief executive officer of Kathmandu,” said Xavier Simonet, in a press release.
Australian-listed Kathmandu first announced the RipCurl acquisition deal on October 1, buying the surfing gear maker Rip Curl Group for A$350 million ($236.22 million).
The transaction was financed through a combination including a fully underwritten 1 for 4 pro-rata accelerated entitlement offer to raise NZ$145 million ($90.80 million) and a placement of about NZ$32 million of new Kathmandu shares to the founders and chief executive of Rip Curl, who will receive a part of the consideration in Kathmandu shares.
Kathmandu, a retailer of outdoor wear and gear in the travel and adventure segment, currently boasts stores in New Zealand, Australia and Britain.
SEE ALSO : Kathmandu upgrades interim profit forecasts as sales, margins rise
Rip Curl has a presence across Australia and New Zealand, as well as North America, Europe, South East Asia and Brazil.