Simms sold again

[ryansheehan]

Interesting information but this can't be good for their products.

Here

 

[dudemanspecial]

SVP is gonna run up debt and let it burn to the ground. Thats what they do. RIP Simms.

 

[ryansheehan]

SVP is gonna run up debt and let it burn to the ground. Thats what they do. RIP Simms.

Long list of brands associated with Vista and this sale. I didn't realize bushnell and Remington were with them as well.

 

[dudemanspecial]

Long list of brands associated with Vista and this sale. I didn't realize bushnell and Remington were with them as well.

Yeah ask the Remington fans how they feel about them.

 

[bringthepain]

Remington was destroyed by litigation (following the hook at sandy) thats how they ended up in this situation

 

[cpc1027]

The article I saw reported the outdoor goods (Simms, et al) going to one buyer and the ammunition/component businesses going to an different international buyer. It will be interesting to see how it all shakes out and the end result for the consumers.

 

[BrookieChaser]

Remington ammunition is owned by Vista outdoors, as well as CCi and Federal ammunition. I don't believe Rem Arms is owned by Vista. I think it is owned by the CEO that ran them into the ground.

 

[bringthepain]

Remington ammunition is owned by Vista outdoors, as well as CCi and Federal ammunition. I don't believe Rem Arms is owned by Vista. I think it is owned by the CEO that ran them into the ground.

Yeah the different branches of Remington got all split up when they were litigated into bankrupcy by the hook families with the help of our uncle sam. I dont believe they have been one entity since then just several pieces of the old company still carrying the name

 

[Bamboozle]

Might be time to look into investing in the Gear Aid Company, the folks that make Aquaseal... 😉

More info.

 

[BrookieChaser]

Yeah the different branches of Remington got all split up when they were litigated into bankrupcy by the hook families with the help of our uncle sam. I dont believe they have been one entity since then just several pieces of the old company still carrying the name

The lawsuit/bad press over the Walker trigger didn't help them (which I think was user error in improper adjustment and greedy lawyers got a hold of it). Quality declined severely when they got sold to the holding firm, and then the hook lawsuit happened which killed them.

On the Simms front. I haven't bought anything from them since the original sale. The redesign of the Solarflex hooded shirt (my favorite Simms product) did not inspire confidence in their new program. Luckily I had stocked up on the original. Free Fly is now taking a share of the former Simms market.

 

[bringthepain]

I had to look up Free Fly, i will check out their offerings during future shopping. Not familiar with them until now

 

[greywolf]

SVP is gonna run up debt and let it burn to the ground. Thats what they do. RIP Simms.

It is never good news for high quality outdoor companies once private equity firms get involved.

 

[poopdeck]

SVP is gonna run up debt and let it burn to the ground. Thats what they do. RIP Simms.

That’s not actually what they do. Quite the opposite actually. If they run up debt and burn it to the ground they will make no money and will lose money. What they hope to do is build the company up and then resell at a higher value. This is how they get investors, not by burning things to the ground. The fact the Simms sold out to a private equity just shows you the Simms was dead or dying on the vine already and needed rescuing. SVP obviously feels Simms can by made profitable.

 

[dudemanspecial]

That’s not actually what they do. Quite the opposite actually. If they run up debt and burn it to the ground they will make no money and will lose money. What they hope to do is build the company up and then resell at a higher value. This is how they get investors, not by burning things to the ground. The fact the Simms sold out to a private equity just shows you the Simms was dead or dying on the vine already and needed rescuing. SVP obviously feels Simms can by made profitable.

There are so many articles available online to read about how these equity firms work.

They see the name Simms as being something they can make money off of.

My opinion of course , but Simms as we know it will never be the same. If it is still around in 10 years, it will be as overseas manufactured outdoor equipment and clothing sold at a place like Target or Walmart.

 

[BrookieChaser]

From my experience, a private equity firm buys a company with a good reputation for quality and a solid customer base. They then cheapen the product to maximize the profit, quality suffers, sales suffer and the former company is either just a name that they use to rebrand other products or it goes out of business entirely.

The writing was on the wall for Simms when they started selling products in the Cabelas stores and marketing to the pro bass contingency. Kind of like Sage.

 

[PennKev]

Brands come and go. Some come back again, many don't. Before Simms there was Red Ball and Hodgeman. Red Ball is long gone and Hodgeman barely exists.

If Simms falls off, Grundens seems poised to fill that part of the market.

 

[DomR]

It is never good news for high quality outdoor companies once private equity firms get involved.

It's rarely good news for any domestic company once private equity gets involved. PE playbook -- cuts costs, offshore jobs, grow profit margin, sell off at a multiple, take their payouts, and leave the rest behind for those who are left to figure out. There's no care for quality or for the remaining employees.

 

[troutbert]

It seems to me that Simms has better name recognition for wading gear than any other company.

They charge high prices, but people still buy their stuff. So, what's their problem?

 

[BrookieChaser]

Like PennKev said, it seems since the first Simms sale, Grundens has been on a push to cut into Simms' wader market. At least in the circles I run in.

 

[poopdeck]

It's rarely good news for any domestic company once private equity gets involved. PE playbook -- cuts costs, offshore jobs, grow profit margin, sell off at a multiple, take their payouts, and leave the rest behind for those who are left to figure out. There's no care for quality or for the remaining employees.

This is mostly true. Fact is Simms was peddling junk at inflated prices for a number of years. They cut costs and quality where they could to squeeze as much profit out of the company as they could before selling. Simms knew exactly what they were doing. So what’s actually best for employees is that PE bought the company and will now resurrect it better off than it was left to them. Surely not the best case scenario for employees or quality but it’s better than Simms running itself completely out of existence. It’s now up to Simms employees to see the writing on the wall and make a career change.