HOOD RIVER, OR (BRAIN) — Action sports company DaKine has been acquired by San Francisco-based private investment firm Altamont Capital Partners. Following the sale’s completion July 23, DaKine announced that its president Francois Carrete had stepped down, and that Leslie Lane of Altamont Capital will assume the role of chairman and CEO.
The $70 million sale occurred as part of a rescue deal between Billabong and Altamont, in an effort to reduce Billabong’s debt. DaKine is the second of Billabong’s brands to be sold off in the past 15 months; it offloaded a 48.5 percent stake in Nixon accessories in April 2012.
“We’d like to thank Francois for his leadership and efforts over the past 18 months and wish him future success. We are excited to begin this new chapter in Dakine’s history, and are pleased to be able to invest in the future of this great brand,” said Lane.
A former senior executive at Nike, Lane most recently worked as a partner at Altamont with a focus on consumer and retail business.
“We are excited to have an executive of Leslie’s experience and talent join DaKine. We see great potential for this company and are confident that his leadership can unleash that potential,” said Steve Brownlie, principal at Altamont Capital.
This is the second time DaKine ownership has changed hands in the past five years. Originally founded as a windsurf company in Maui in 1979 by Rob Kaplan, DaKine moved to the outdoor mecca of Hood River, Oregon, in the early 1980s. The company expanded into ski, snowboard and skate apparel, and later into mountain biking clothing and accessories and travel gear. In 2008, Kaplan sold DaKine to Australian surf and lifestyle company Billabong.
Since Billabong’s acquisition, DaKine deepened its commitment to the mountain bike market, expanding its women’s and non-downhill product offerings and launching a children’s line. Through its partnership with Billabong, DaKine was able to improve the quality of DaKine’s biking apparel, with access to sourcing teams and a direct link to factories in Asia.
