Bauer Hockey
 | |
| Industry | Sporting goods |
|---|---|
| Founded | Kitchener, Ontario, 1927 |
| Headquarters | Exeter, NH[1], United States |
| Products | Ice hockey equipment, inline skates |
| Owner | Performance Sports Group Ltd. |
| Website | http://www.bauer.com/ |
Bauer Hockey (renamed Nike Bauer from 2005 to 2009) is one of the leading manufacturers of ice hockey equipment, fitness and recreational skates and apparel.[2] Bauer produces helmets, gloves, sticks, skates, shin guards, pants, shoulder pads, elbow pads, as well as goalie equipment. Bauer primarily developed and manufactured hockey skates prior to 1990, when it acquired the hockey assets of Cooper Canada Ltd. Bauer operates as a unit of Performance Sports Group Ltd. of Exeter, New Hampshire.
History
In 1927, the Freibauer family, owners of Western Shoe Company, established the Bauer company as it is known today in Kitchener, Ontario.
Bauer was the first hockey company to begin producing hockey skates in which the blade was permanently secured to the boot. The boot was made by Bauer and the skate blade by the now-defunct Starr Manufacturing Company in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. This innovation was originally marketed under the trade name "Bauer Supreme".
The arrival of the George Tackaberry boot, made by CCM under the "Tacks" trademark (the Tackaberry name having been acquired by CCM in 1937) saw a shift in the balance of power. The Tackaberry boot with CCM Pro-Lite blade would be worn by all NHL scoring champions from 1939 through 1969. The "Tacks" series of CCM skates would later be retired by Reebok in 2006.
The Bauer name returned to prominence after the company undertook a pioneering step of paying superstar Bobby Hull to endorse their skates. This move, and the introduction soon after of the TUUK chassis, ushered in a new era for the company.
The current National Hockey League rule banning the use of fancy skates was introduced on September 24, 1927. At the time, this effectively outlawed all skates other than tube skates. The plastic/rubber stopper seen on the heel of later tube skates was developed by CCM in 1960 following an injury to the Montreal Canadiens' Maurice "Rocket" Richard in the 1958–59 season. It was made mandatory by the NHL in 1964.
Then in the early 1970s, Jim Roberts, also of the Canadiens, began wearing the now famous TUUK blade. High-profile teammates Guy Lafleur, Steve Shutt and Jacques Lemaire soon followed. The success of this blade chassis was such that by 1995, the various Canstar skate brands (Micron, Bauer, etc.) had a 70% NHL market share while their TUUK and ICM holders combined for a 95% share. (Note: Bauer no longer offers the ICM holder on player skates, although it is still offered with goalie skates, in addition to the TUUK cowling.)
In 1994, Bauer began producing the perforated TUUK chassis, which is the piece of equipment that connects the steel blade to the actual boot of the skate. This revolutionized the sport of hockey because it allowed skates to be made lighter, as well as more durable.
In 1994, Canstar, the parent company of Bauer, became a wholly owned subsidiary of Nike.[3] In 2006, beginning with the release of the Nike Bauer Supreme One90, the company's products were rebranded as Nike Bauer. This was the first time Nike had ever used a partner brand name on a product. Nike sold the company to investors Roustan, Inc. and Kohlberg & Co., on February 21, 2008 and the company is once again known as Bauer.[4]
On September 25, 2008, Bauer announced the purchase of rival Mission-Itech.[5] Mission and Itech gear was rebranded as Bauer beginning in 2009.
Timeline:kitter
- 1927 Freibauer family of Kitchener starts company.
- 1933 Company develops the first skate with the blade attached to boot.
- 1950s Bauer becomes a division of shoe giant Greb Industries (known as the first international licensee of Hush Puppies shoes, also produced Kodiak boots and Collins safety shoes).
- 1974 Warrington Products, controlled by Bronfman family, buys Greb.
- 1975 Company launches the TUUK blade holder.
- 1981 Ski and skate boot entrepreneur Icaro Olivieri merges his company with Warrington.
- 1988 Olivieri and investment group executes leveraged buyout of struggling Warrington and renames it Canstar Sports, focussing on hockey equipment.
- 1992 Hockey star Eric Lindros joins Bauer team.
- 1995 Nike buys Canstar, Bauer’s parent company, for $395 million.
- 1997 Bauer introduces the lightweight VAPOR skate and a better helmet with dual density foam.
- 2005 Company develops the VAPOR XXX one piece stick.
- 2008 Quebec-based Roustan Inc. and U.S.-based private equity firm Kohlberg & Co. purchase Nike’s Bauer assets for $200 million.
- 2010 Bauer buys Maverik Lacrosse.
- 2011 Bauer Performance Sports (BPS) listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange [BAU], now PSG.
- 2012 BPS acquires Cascade for lacrosse equipment and Inaria for sports apparel.
- 2013 BPS acquires Combat Sports for composite baseball and softball bats.
- 2014 BPS acquires Easton for baseball/softball equipment making them the world's largest team sports equipment suppliers.
- 2014 Lists on New York Stock Exchange (PSG) with name change to Performance Sports Group.