Pierre Boivin, President and COO of Canstar Sports is
interviewed in this month's issue of SPORTING GOODS BUSINESS and
addressed Nike Inc.'s buyout of Canstar.  Boivin, on possible
changes in the management structure:  "We have discussed this in
great length, and the basic attitude is that if 'it ain't broke
don't fix it.' ... I have seldom seen such a perfect marriage
between two companies."  On the in-line industry retail sales in
'94:  "It's very difficult to predict at this stage, but all the
indications are that the growth in North America will probably be
somewhere between 40 and 50 percent (over 1993's figures).  In
Europe, it looks like the market will probably have doubled, and
it may have even tripled from 1993's level."  Boivin expected
Canstar to grow from $160M in sales in '93 to "well above" $400M
in sales over the next four to five years.  On the success of in-
line category continuing in the next few years:  "This year has
been a surprise so far, and we are starting to see a segment very
clearly between in-line skates and in-line hockey.  And for us to
attain our goals, they are now two very separate sectors today,
because the fastest growing area of in-line skating is roller
hockey.  It's significant because we are to in-line hockey what
Rollerblade was to the sport of in-line skating at its inception"
(Greg Pesky, SPORTING GOODS BUSINESS, 1/19).

     Cobra Golf Inc. reported a net income of $5.2M for the 4th
quarter ending December 31, an increase of 220% from net income
of $1.6M for the same quarter in '93.  The company's net sales
increased by 130% to $29M in the quarter up from $12.6M in '93.
Cobra attributes the increase in net sales and net income to
continued demand for all of its oversize product lines, which the
company claims is partially a result of their increased marketing
efforts (Cobra).

     The CISL and Garcis, USA announced yesterday that they have
signed a three-year marketing and sponsorship agreement to become
the league's official uniform, shoe and soccer ball sponsor.
CISL Commissioner Ron Weinstein:  "This is a major step for the
CISL.  Garcis' sponsorship of the CISL is the most extensive
uniform, shoe and soccer ball agreement ever for a professional
indoor soccer league" (CISL).

     The Hornets are the No. 1 team in total sales of NBA-
licensed products -- including jerseys, caps, computer games, and
other products -- for the 1st quarter of the '94-95 season.  The
Bulls have led the league since the '89-90, but have fallen to
2nd.  Joe Martucci, manager of Modell's Sporting Goods in New
York: "Last year, people really didn't get the effect of Michael
(Jordan) not being on the Bulls.  This year we have noticed it in
sales" (Tom Lowry, N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 1/20).  The complete list
includes:

          

  
 
    
 
      
1
    
    
 
      
HORNETS
    
    
 
      
6
    
    
 
      
KNICKS
    
  
  
 
    
 
      
2
    
    
BULLS
    
 
      
7
    
    
RAPTORS
  
  
 
    
 
      
3
    
    
MAGIC
    
 
      
8
    
    
WARRIORS
  
  
 
    
 
      
4
    
    
SUNS
    
 
      
9
    
    
GRIZZLIES
  
  
 
    
 
      
5
    
    
SONICS
    
 
      
10
    
    
CELTICS
  


     NBA Marketing Communications Manager Jon Stern said the
Hornets success is worldwide, and attributed it to a "combination
of the teal, the way they've marketed themselves and the logo."
The Hornets were the first pro team to have teal as their primary
color.  Stern also pointed to the popularity of the Hornets'
version of the video game "NBA Jam" as a parameter of their
success.  Team President Spencer Stolpen said their research
shows the Hornet's merchandise to be the top seller among "inner-
city minority youth."  Stolpen: "The irony is the smallest market
in the NBA is now the top-selling merchandiser" (Ron Green,
CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 1/19).  Stern said that NBA Properties is
projecting over $3B in sales worldwide for '94-95.  The Raptors
and Grizzlies, two expansion franchises who have yet to play a
game, both made strong initial showings (THE DAILY).  Raptors
Consumer Products Dir David Strickland estimated his team and the
Grizzlies "may have sold as much as $100M in merchandise and that
is without having team uniforms on the markets, traditionally one
of the fastest moving items" (Craig Daniels, Toronto GLOBE &
MAIL, 1/19).

     An Atlanta-based alliance of minority leaders launched a
boycott campaign against Burger King, "alleging discrimination
against African Americans and Hispanics" (MIAMI HERALD,
1/19)....The first KFC "Colonel's Kitchen" opens today in Dallas,
TX.  It is the company's attempt to challenge Boston Chicken's
market share in the "comfort food" wars (USA TODAY, 1/20)....RJR
Nabisco raised $1.2B from the sale of 19% of its Nabisco food
operations in a move aimed at bolstering its stock price and
reducing debt (N.Y. POST, 1/20)....Next week, MCI is expected to
report "flat-to-down" earnings, "a sorry fourth quarter in an
unusually troublesome year" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 1/20).
....Northwest Airlines posted record fourth quarter profit that
was more than double what Wall Street had expected (WALL STREET
JOURNAL, 1/20)....Apple reported the highest quarterly sales in
the company's history for its first fiscal quarter, with earnings
up 78% over last year's first quarter (FINANCIAL TIMES,
1/20)....A digital tape-editing machine developed by Avid
Technology in Tewksbury, MA, that "whittles down the hours it
takes to search through footage and cobble various tape segments
together" was used by three NFL teams this past season to speed
the "time-consuming" chore of watching game films.  The company
hopes that the machine becomes popular enough so that some day
"all game footage is digitally stored in a central NFL library"
(Carl Desens, BUSINESS WEEK, 1/23 issue).

     Today at 12:00pm EST, the Jaguars will unveil the team's
game uniforms and new logo.  While the colors of gold, teal and
black will remain the same, the Jaguar logo will make a 3/4 turn
so that it is more of a front shot of the animal rather than a
profile (Jaguars).  The new logo is an attempt to defuse a
lawsuit filed by Jaguar Cars Ltd., which claimed that the new
NFL's team logo too closely resembled the registered trademark of
the luxury sports car.  Besides the logo, the key issue in the
suit is the team's name, which the car manufacturer believes it
owns.  It is seeking an agreement with the team that would
acknowledge the car company's name ownership through a license or
some other arrangement (Baltimore SUN, 1/20).

     According to a survey conducted by Edelmann Scott, a
Richmond-based advertising and public relations firm, more than a
third of people planning to watch the Super Bowl say they will
either ignore all the ads or watch 25% or less of the ad time.
Edelmann Scott's David Blum: "This is bad news for advertisers
investing $1 million for each 30-second."  Eighty-three percent
of those surveyed say they plan to watch the game.  Interest in
both the game and the ads is highest among 18-24 year olds and
people who earn more than $50,000 a year and lowest among
retirees.  But according to Nike's Keith Peters, the number of ad
viewers is higher for this game: "If you were to ask the same
group of people about ads on some other special event or program,
you'd probably have more than one-third of them ignoring the ads"
(Dottie Enrico, USA TODAY, 1/20)....Today's USA TODAY "Super Bowl
Ad Watch" features Isuzu's campaign.  They have bought one 60-
second ad in the third quarter (USA TODAY, 1/20)....  Ford will
unveil their Super Bowl ad campaign today which will feature the
Ford Explorer (Ford)....Former player Lawrence Taylor's business
manager Bobby Cupo said Taylor will not sail on the controversial
Super Bowl cruise that will feature gambling and nude dancers.
The NFL has warned any players or those affiliated with the
league that if the sail on the cruise they could face fines
and/or lifetime suspension (N.Y. POST, 1/20).

     PBS' "Nightly Business Report" examined the new "battle for
Britain" between Coke and Pepsi.  Pepsi will be using "a new
advertising weapon" in supermodel Cindy Crawford.  PepsiCo
Int'l/Europe VP/Advertising Larry McInstosh:  "Today Coke and
Pepsi are neck and neck in the States.  And while a lot of
factors have contributed to our success, it was our advertising
that really convinced millions of Americans to be part of the
Pepsi generation."  In November in the UK, Coke's market share
"dipped below 50% for the first time ever" to 42.2%, while Pepsi
had a 20.1% market share ("NBR," PBS, 1/19).  Pepsi's new U.S.
campaign, which debuts during the Super Bowl, will feature the
slogan: "Nothing Else is a Pepsi."  The company is "backing off
from its youth kick" and emphasizing "brand tradition" in order
to target a wider audience (Harry Berkowitz, N.Y. NEWSDAY, 1/20).
In New York, Stuart Elliott examines Coca-Cola's agency strategy
--based on creative criteria instead of those used to dealing
with huge corporations (N.Y. TIMES, 1/20).

     In the current issue of FORBES, Rita Koselka asks whether
ITT made the right decision in buying Caesars World, rather than
Bally Entertainment Corp.  ITT bought Caesars for an estimated
$2B while it could have acquired Bally for around "$850 million
in cash plus assumption of $260 million in debt."  And now, there
is speculation that the company's CEO, Arthur Goldberg, is
"fattening Bally to put it on the block at a better price than it
would have fetched from ITT."  Goldberg plans to invest around
$44M into a "riverboat" project in the Mississippi/Louisiana
area.  Such investments question whether he "wants to expand
rather than sell out."  And, if he does, "it will be for a lot
more than the $1.1 billion deal that ITT walked away from in
1993" (Rita Koselka, FORBES, 1/30 issue).