ASICS America - Running Footwear, Apparel, and Accessories

ASICS America Growth Momentum Continues Despite Economy

Irvine, CA (July 28, 2009) - Despite a down economy, ASICS America Corporation, the athletic footwear and apparel manufacturer headquartered in Irvine, California, continues to see significant growth and momentum.

Financial results for the 2008 fiscal year ending March 31, 2009, showed the company’s revenue at $510 million, a staggering 20 percent increase over the previous year. Expectations for 2009 are also positive, predicting an increase of between six to seven percent for the first half of the year, and about eight percent for the entire year.

“Our running category is growing even in these tough times,” says Rich Bourne, President and COO, ASICS America. “We have strong brand recognition, excellent product and we are performing well at retail. These are all strong indicators that we have a sound strategy in place, and despite the challenges of the economy, are continuing to build a strong platform for continued growth in the future.”

ASICS America’s running business in particular is strong, with an 11 percent increase for the year to date. This growth is led by a stable of top-selling performance running styles including the GT-2140, GEL-Nimbus and GEL-Kayano. Women’s running also continues to be a main driver of the growth.

“We continue to add innovation on our top performance models like the Kayano and Nimbus series which has met the expectations of our loyal consumers,” say Jim Monahan, Vice President of Footwear, ASICS America. “We also diversified our overall running selections, leading to a new consumer base for our brand.”

According to the NPD Group/Point Of Sale Tracking Service, as of end of May 2009, ASICS is up 20.5 percent in dollars over last year and is number two (in dollars) among all running footwear brands. This is very good standing considering the total running footwear market is down almost five percent.

In addition to the domestic growth, ASICS America’s Brazilian subsidiary continues to benefit from a strong performance brand position resulting in high double-digit growth over the last year.

ASICS America’s growth has contributed to the overall financial growth of parent company ASICS Corporation, headquartered in Kobe, Japan, which posted a seven percent increase (in yen) in net consolidated revenues for the fiscal year ended March 31.

ASICS Corporation, with more than 50 years of footwear manufacturing experience, offers a full line of performance-driven athletic shoes and technical active sports apparel and accessories. For more information, please visit www.asics.com.