Oakley Shuffles Assignments of 2 Top Executives

By PATRICE APODACA

Sept. 9, 1997 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

FOOTHILL RANCH —

Oakley Inc., still trying to recover from disappointing sales of its eye wear, on Monday announced that Chief Executive Mike Parnell is being replaced by Link Newcomb, the company’s chief operating officer.

Parnell, who has been chief executive since 1986, will remain with the manufacturer of pricey sunglasses as vice chairman, focusing exclusively on sales and marketing.

Analysts viewed the management shuffle at Foothill Ranch-based Oakley as a step in the right direction, signaling the company’s awareness that it needs to bolster its operations and product deliveries.

“I think the recognition of Link Newcomb and his role at the company is important,” said analyst Marcia L. Aaron at Alex. Brown in San Francisco. “Mike [Parnell] has always been in sales and marketing--that’s his strength. Link has been focused more on operations.”

Oakley’s problems surfaced late last year when its largest customer, the Sunglass Hut retail chain, got stuck with a large amount of unsold product and canceled scheduled orders just before the holiday shopping season.

The snafu, which analysts attributed in part to poor communications between Sunglass Hut and its suppliers, sent Oakley’s stock tumbling from a yearly high of $24.50 a share to a low of $8.38 in February.

On Monday, Oakley’s stock closed at $12.75 a share, up 44 cents in New York Stock Exchange trading.

Lower sales to Sunglass Hut were also cited by Oakley as the reason for a 44% plunge in its second-quarter earnings. Net income for the three months ended June 30 fell to $8.8 million from $15.7 million a year earlier, while sales were down 12% to $55.2 million from $62.8 million.

Newcomb, 35, is an attorney and certified public accountant. He joined Oakley in June 1994 and has held a variety of executive positions.

Otto F. Grote, an analyst at Derby Securities in New York, said that Oakley and other eye-wear manufacturers that have been burned by the return of unsold merchandise are learning that they must do a better job of tracking retail sales and getting hot products to stores quickly to capitalize on demand.

“I think what you’re getting now is a lot more cooperation between the retailer and the manufacturer,” he said. “It’s of critical importance” that shipments be timed correctly.

Also on Monday, Oakley named Tom George as chief financial officer, a position that had been filled temporarily by Newcomb since May. George is former chief financial officer at Remec, a San Diego-based maker of wireless electronics.

Steve Rosenberg was promoted to brand manager of Oakley’s new athletic footwear division. He was previously a sports marketing director for the eye-wear line.

Last month, Oakley announced plans to enter the hotly competitive athletic shoe market. The move pits it against giant Nike Inc., which recently invaded Oakley’s turf by launching an eye-wear line.

Jim Jannard, Oakley’s chairman and president, said in a statement Monday that the company is aiming to have its footwear available for retailers in the first half of next year.

Jannard, Newcomb and Parnell could not be reached for comment.

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Oakley Inc. at a Glance

Headquarters: Foothill Ranch

Chairman/president: Jim Jannard

CEO: Link Newcomb

Business: Sunglass designer and manufacturer; recently announced plans to enter footwear market

Employees: 730

Went public: 1995

Exchange: NYSE

Ticker symbol: OO

Sales, Stock Slide