Patagonia Footwear Steps Up for Growth in 2009

Entering its third year at market with a new General Manager, Bill Dodge, and a growing sales force, Patagonia Footwear expands its tradeshow booth in time for Outdoor Retailer Winter Market 2009 (booth 8042). The old booth is incorporated into the new in an effort to reuse all parts and minimize waste. With the growth of the booth comes a new sales force, Adrenaline Sports Marketing, to manage the Southeast territory.

“Like our product line, our booth represents best product, least harm by using durable, sustainable and recyclable materials to create a structure that epitomizes the Patagonia brand,” said Bill Dodge, general manager of Patagonia Footwear. “As our brand continues to grow and gain followers, we found it necessary to increase our tradeshow footprint to meet the needs of our team and customers.”

Inspired by and neighboring the Patagonia booth, Patagonia Footwear will increase its booth size from 20 by 30 to 40 by 30. The entire booth is recyclable. Materials include sisal rugs, woven from natural plant fibers such as the Agave cactus plant, known to be naturally durable, resilient and stain resistant. Other materials include bamboo panels and steel walls and columns. Marketing materials used in the booth are also made from recycled materials such as recycled cardboard.

Additionally entering the New Year, Patagonia Footwear appointed Bill Dodge as global General Manager to oversee all business operations, product development, marketing and sales initiatives. Prior to joining Patagonia Footwear, he was General Manager of GoLite Footwear for Timberland and Director of Footwear for Salomon North America.

Patagonia Footwear will also further develop its internal marketing, product and sales teams to support the company’s growth. Most recently, the company partnered with Adrenaline Sports Marketing to manage the sales for the Southeast region including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. Adrenaline Sports Marketing managed by Kev Martin, an industry veteran with invaluable relationships within the Specialty Outdoor, Independent Footwear, Sporting Goods and Department store channels.

Bringing further experience to the Patagonia Footwear brand are Martin’s associates Roland Markwalter and Josh Passmore. Markwalter, who has been in retail for over twenty years, is best known as proprietor of Serve N’ Volley Sports of Huntsville, Alabama and possesses a formidable knowledge of the outdoor, wintersports specialty and lifestyle channels of business. Passmore’s background is in biomechanics consulting to athletic trainers, universities, pro sports teams and physical therapy clinics, specifically with regard to feet and footwear.

Patagonia, with sales last year of $278M, is noted internationally for its commitment to product quality and environmental activism. Its Environmental Grants Program has contributed over $30M to grassroots environmental activists since the program began in 1985, and its Environmental Internship Program allows employees to work for environmental groups while receiving their full paycheck. Incorporating environmental responsibility in to product development, the company has, since 1996, used only organically-grown cotton in its clothing line, and its most recent launch of synthetic fiber-to-fiber recycling – taking back its worn-out clothing and reincarnating it as new products, forever capturing the petroleum used in making virgin fiber. Known for a unique corporate culture, the company has been recognized for many years by Working Mother magazine as one of the “100 Best Companies for Working Mothers,” and is a regular recipient of recognition by Fortune and Human Resources Management magazine as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work for in America.”