Brendan Coffey
2 min read
Donald Trump’s tariff policies haven’t immediately affected sporting goods consumers outside the U.S., a fact that has made billionaire Chip Wilson $600 million wealthier Tuesday.
Wilson owns 104 million shares in Amer Sports, the parent of sports companies including ball and racket maker Wilson, baseball brand Louisville Slugger, outdoor clothing brand Arc’teryx and ski and shoe supplier Salomon. Amer Sports stock jumped 19%, or $5.98 a share, in Tuesday trading on the New York Stock Exchange to close at $37.37, after reporting strong earnings and an outlook that minimizes the effect of the Trump tariffs on the business.
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“We have low exposure to the U.S., only 26% of revenue. … And from a bottom-line perspective, the impact from tariffs based on where tariffs stand today is negligible,” Amer chief financial officer Andrew Page said on a conference call.
Except for its most premium baseball gear, all of Amer’s goods sold in the U.S. are made outside the country, with about one third from China, another third from Vietnam and the rest made elsewhere in Asia and other parts of the world. Even if the original 145% China tariff Trump announced stayed in effect through year-end, Amer said it expected the hit from tariffs would have been about five cents a share profit in 2025. “Over time, we believe we will be able to mitigate the majority of even the higher tariff rates,” Page said.
That confidence heartened shareholders, of which Wilson is one of the largest. Wilson, a Canadian worth $7.6 billion according to Forbes, went in on a deal with three Chinese companies—ANTA Sports, FountainVest and Tencent—to purchase Amer Sports in 2019. The group took the business public last year.
The Chinese connection is no coincidence; the country is the largest and fastest-growing market for Amer’s brands. In particular, Arc’teryx and Salomon are favorites of Chinese consumers, while more recent enthusiasm for tennis and the NBA has helped the sporting goods brand Wilson. Sales in China grew 43% in the quarter and 49% elsewhere in Asia, compared with 12% growth in the U.S. and Europe.
For the billionaire Wilson, his 21% ownership of the company is now worth $4.33 billion after gaining about $607 million Tuesday.
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