Nike has officially sold off Hurley after purchasing the surf brand 17 years ago. Photo: Hurley
After Reuters reported earlier this year that Nike was exploring options to sell-off Hurley, on Tuesday the Beaverton, Oregon-based footwear giant announced it had reached an agreement with Bluestar Alliance LLC to sell the surf brand for an undisclosed sum. Bluestar is an umbrella company whose portfolio of brands consists of
Bebe, Limited Too, Brookstone, and more.
“We appreciate how Bob and the Hurley team have built Hurley into the world’s most innovative surf brand,” said Michael Spillane, president of categories and product at Nike, in a press release. “As we drive increasingly more targeted investment and focused growth through Nike’s Consumer Direct Offense, this change in ownership will allow sharper focus and intentional investment in Hurley’s growth potential.”
Nike purchased Hurley from founder Bob Hurley back in 2002, the financial backing of which has helped the Costa Mesa-based surf brand build out one of the most stacked rosters in the game. Nike’s withdrawal from surfing, though, is indicative of a larger trend of divestment and acquisition in the industry. Earlier this year Rip Curl was acquired by outdoor apparel giant Kathmandu, and in 2018 two giants in surf apparel, Billabong and Quiksilver, merged under the Boardriders, Inc. umbrella.
The deal will reportedly be finalized in December, but at this point, it remains difficult to predict what the potential impact will be on Hurley-sponsored events, team rider contracts, and the like. For now, Bluestar remains fairly vague about all that.
“We have always admired the Hurley brand as it has maintained its leadership role and premium positioning in the surf world,” said Joey Gabbay, CEO of Bluestar Alliance in a presser. “We look forward to building upon the existing Hurley network and expanding to additional countries with the deep relationships that already exist within the Bluestar portfolio of brands. We see Hurley continuing to evolve into a 360-degree lifestyle brand, with action sports playing a key role.”
More on this as it develops.
