Liquid Force & O'Brien bite the dust!

[zone6]

Heres how Performance Ski & Surf see the whole thing.

The Deal: As many of you have heard, Obrien and Liquid Force have closed the factorys doors while ownership finalizes deals to purchase the brands / companies. We feel that this is a strategic move by the corporate office to encourage potential buyers of the company to finalize deals to purchase the company.

Our Take On It: This isn't the first time we've been down this road. Change isn't bad.....new owners provide new vision, new enthusiasm and innovation. And the brands usually come back stronger than ever! We believe in Liquid Force and Obrien, their products, the creative minds behind the scenes, the riders / skiers, and are confident that you will see good things to come! The quality of the 2003 lines and sales has been fantastic and we are committed to continuing supporting these companies to the best of our abilities while they are in limbo. Bottom line, the Boards and skis are great.....and work!


What's It Mean To You: We have 2003 Obrien and Liquid Force, and Cassette Products in stock, ready to hit the water and we are moving forward as planned. Many of our competitors have chosen to turn their back on these brands, not sell them, not offer any warranty on them, and walk away from the companies. We choose to do just the opposite. We believe in the product, the creators of them, and the athletes who support them. They are our friends and part of our extended family. So, Going Forward: Performance will honor Obrien and Liquid Force factory warranties for items you purchase from us for one year from the date of purchase.**
Its our commitment to you our customers.....its our commitment to the brands and the hope that they will get back to business as soon as possible.


Bill Porter
Owner
Performance Ski & Surf
Orlando

[northernmonkey]

with respect to performance-they would say that,'cos otherwise they are gonna be stuck with a lot of stock that they already took delivery of.
if they want to sell it then they have to warranty it or no-one will buy it from them. there are a lot of companies out there trying to flood the market with all their unwanted '03 LF and O'B stock which means cheap boards etc are going to be available soon but that is going to damage the dealers like performance who have a bit more integrity and are trying to play the game straight.
the parent company for the brands(EOS) are pretty much scum because they shipped all their orders and cashed all the cheques before telling everyone they were shutting down-now thats low!

[Ema @ WW Mag]

Dear All,

I just heard on the sporting grapevine that O'brien and Liquid Force now have new owners! When I get anything confirmed I'll let you all know.

[algy]

if its true thats real good news.

[Ema @ WW Mag]

My source is pretty reliable.. but I'm waiting to hear from the horses mouth as they say. I just don't want you guys to assume its dead and buried when things are still happening.

I do know that 2003 product has resumed being despatched from O'Brien several weeks ago.

[Ema @ WW Mag]

Here ya go the info I promised you on LF and Co:

Well, it's final. We've been bringing you bits and pieces of info leading up to this point and we can now report that the Liquid Force, O'Brien and Free Motion brands are back in business as of today.

The papers were signed at 1:02 pm PST and those signatures put the final touches on seven weeks of work aimed toward re-opening the doors of the factories, warehouses and offices that were unexpectedly shut down by Earth and Ocean Sports, Inc. (EOS), former parent company of Liquid Force, O'Brien and Free Motion.

"We're are unbelievably stoked and happy," exclaimed Liquid Force founder and senior vice president, Tony Finn. "Everyone is fired up and ready to make even more unique and innovative products. We're going to do more and better marketing and we're going to have fun wakeboarding and promoting the sport as the coolest thing to do worldwide. We're back and we're going big!"

"O'Brien, Liquid Force and Free Motion and all at Motion Water Sports are extremely excited to be back," said O'Brien General Manager, Jeff Bannister. "We are all ready to do everything we can to get products out to customers and get back to building the best watersports products in the world.

The deal involved a purchase of assets only by a newly formed Washington corporation called Motion Water Sports, Inc. That means that these are essentially three brand new companies starting today. All debts of the former companies stay with EOS, giving the new Liquid Force, O'Brien and Free Motion the opportunity to start with a clean slate.

All offices, factories and warehouses will be open on Monday, 3/31 to start the shipment of products to retailers and the ramping up of production. The companies have quite a bit of inventory ready to ship immediately and will be receiving raw materials next week in order to start manufacturing again.

When asked what the main objectives would be now that they are back in business, Finn stated, "Number one is getting product to retailers. Number two is taking care of the athletes that have stuck by us through everything. Number three is to get our marketing going again. You can look for a cool new ad campaign on the inside cover of the next Wake Boarding magazine. They've also stood by us and supported us. Number four is to create the best wakeboard product line ever for 2004. Everyone will be working hard; myself, Jimmy Redmon, Don Wallace, Ray Cruz, all the athletes, all the sale reps and many others."

When asked how the new ownership will differ from the last, Finn said, "The problems we had with the old company were cash flow related and we had investors that tended to meddle and didn't understand the wakeboard business. Nothing against them personally, but we now have financially stable investors that understand the business and also understand what parts of the business they don't understand. That means that Jimmy, Don and I will be allowed to run the business and focus on making great boards, bindings, wakeskates and promoting the sport."

"My goal since I started in the wakeboard business in 1986 has always been to make the best products I can make and that hasn't changed. We want to build boards, bindings and wakeskates that will allow wakeboarders to have a great time on the water. Now we can focus on that without worrying about cash flow issues. It feels like a giant weight has been lifted off our shoulders."

In the O'Brien camp, the names are the same, but the duties will be shuffled around a bit. Pete Surrette will be heading up Sales and Marketing, while Jeff Bannister will handle the General Manager duties. A limited number of other employees will be hired back on an ongoing basis.

Cassette Wakeskates, which is often erroneously assumed to be a subsidiary of Liquid Force, is actually a separate company owned by Thomas Horrell. Cassette has had a licensing agreement with Liquid Force in the past and the same will most likely be renegotiated for future distribution of Cassette product through the "new" Liquid Force.

Finn continues, "I just want to send out a thanks for the love and huge level of support and patience that we have all received personally from our retailers, our sales reps, our distributors, our athletes and ordinary wakeboarders like myself. Everyone was rooting for us and stuck by us through this whole ordeal. The support we had gave us that extra energy we need to keep it going under tremendously adverse conditions. We are ready to rock!"

Bannister concurred, "Thanks to dealers, riders and all that have stuck with us through the turmoil over the last few weeks."

According to a Motion Water Sports, Inc. press release, "The O'Brien, Liquid Force and Free Motion brands are completely prepared to make every effort possible to re-establish day to day business as quickly as possible."

Customer service and sales departments of each company will be ready to answer calls, questions or inquiries at the following numbers:


O'Brien - (800) 662-7436
Liquid Force - (800) 820-7781
Free Motion - (800) 820-7781