While Camelbak got its start in the mountain biking and military segments, there are additional growth segments on the horizon as it moves forward with the development of new performance hydration products. In an ideal world, Camelbak would like the brand’s expanding product line to completely replace the toss-away, $10 billion bottled water industry.
Short of that, however, CamelBak is eyeing the running market, new international distribution opportunities and DTC for growth. She said the brand remains extremely committed to recreational markets both domestically and internationally. The company currently has 65 international distributors, but would gain expansion in Europe, Asia, and South America with improved global recreational distribution. Meanwhile, CamelBak’s e-commerce arm only became functional in Q4/12 before expanding to the full range of products in Feb. Key brand retail partners are also allowed to sell CamelBak products online. In FY12, the brand’s top 10 retail customers accounted for 49%, or $77.2 million, of gross sales.
CamelBak CEO Sally McCoy, who was recruited to the Petaluma, CA, hydration system company in 2006 after stints at The North Face, Sierra Designs and as an investment banker, spoke about many aspects of its business earlier at an investor day sponsored by CamelBak’s parent Compass Diversified Holdings. Compass acquired 80% of CAmelbak’s shares in Aug. 2011 for $211.6 million from Irving Place Capital. The company, the first to introduce an entirely BPA-free plastic water bottle in May 2008, points out that with its bite-valve technology, consumers drink 24% more water than those using a single-serve, disposable bottle.
McCoy was coy when asked if the company was considering acquiring rival Nalgene, only saying the company “would only look at opportunistic acquisitions at the right value.”
Written by Nicolas Yang
