In all honesty I have been watching much of this unfold as you guys have. Scott and his team are doing a great job up there in Winnipeg and now it's essentially just branded TRUE as they did acquire VH Footwear.
The key here and the main difference in what we have seen in other acquisitions by other companies in this industry over the last 10 years- Is that TRUE understands that the people behind the brand make a difference. Not the other way around. I signed on to work for these people because, of the leadership and the value they placed on the people they entrust their brand to.
I understand that I just took a whole big detour and for that I apologize, but I wanted to make sure that was clear as some of the early comments I read about the acquisition were without merit.
I can't speak a whole lot about the holder yet as us retail reps are just now being integrated into the process. I do recall riding with Gilles about a year and half ago and he said he had been working on a holder due to the pull for his product and a shrinking ecosystem in which Step could thrive. It would appear that the holder is a product of VH and Steps' collaboration as it was cobranded at one point, but I can't say for sure as I don't have the whole backstory.
As I sit here I am waiting for a shipment of iPads for my dealers Fit Centers and am very anxious to get going. Once I have an opportunity to visit the new facility that the team is in I can perhaps speak to the holder and the boot more in depth. I will be more than happy to share as I know more, but for now- What an exciting time to be in this industry.