Investing.com -- Deckers Outdoor Corporation (NYSE:DECK), the parent company of UGG boots, announced on Thursday that CEO Angel Martinez will retire at the end of this month, when he will be succeeded by company president Dave Powers.
Martinez, 59, has served as chief executive with Deckers Brands since April, 2005, where he has been credited for helping maximize profits and drive brand awareness. A 2013 study from Bizrate Insights found that UGG boots had become so popular throughout the U.S. that more than a quarter of American women living in cold-weather climates owned a pair at the time. The trend has not lost steam. Last year, Deckers said annual revenues surged 14.5% to a record-high of $1.817 billion, driven by the success of a new product line and increased demand across its brand portfolio. Previously, Martinez spent nearly four years at Reebok as the company's Chief Marketing Officer through June, 2001.
"The board of directors and management team has been working on this succession plan for some time as it was incredibly important for us to find the right person to lead Deckers Brands into the future," Martinez said in a statement. “Throughout his career in retail and footwear, and especially during the past four years at Deckers, Dave has exhibited all the qualities that we’ve been looking for in the Company’s next Chief Executive Officer."
"He has been highly influential in developing our Omni Channel platform, streamlining our brand management and strengthening our corporate culture. Having worked closely with Dave and seeing what he has accomplished, I have great confidence that he is absolutely the right person to elevate our brands to new levels and drive the Company forward.”
Powers joined Deckers Brands in June 2012 as President of its Direct-to-Consumer division, before he was elevated to President of Omni Channel, where he managed the company's global retail and e-commerce operations. Powers, a graduate of Northeastern University, has served in a senior management capacity with Gap Inc (NYSE:GPS), Timberland and Converse among others.
“I am honored to be entrusted with leading this great Company and am truly appreciative of the confidence that Angel, the board of directors and management team continue to show in me. I am very optimistic about the long-term potential of our brands," Powers said. "I am eager to continue the tremendous progress the team has made building a stronger, more efficient organization to support the many growth opportunities still ahead of us.”
Also on Thursday, Deckers Brands reported a loss of $23.7 million or 0.73 per share in the first quarter, down from profits of $1.4 million or 0.04 per share during the same quarter last year. Deckers, which lowered its full-year earnings outlook to 4.05 and 4.40 per share, blamed an unseasonably warm winter for the losses.
Shares in Deckers Brand fell 1.25 or 2.54% to 48.00.