Eric Leemens, an executive from outside the outdoor industry, was recruited last month as general manager of AS Adventure, the leading Belgian outdoor retailer. The company was established in 1995 by Emiel Lathouwers and it later acquired Cotswold in the UK, and Bever Zwerfsport, the largest outdoor specialist in the Netherlands. The buy of Bever in 2007 formed a group with sales of more than €200 million that was taken over a few months later by Lion Capital, a British investment company. Lathouwers retained a minority stake but relinquished his chief executive’s seat, to be replaced by Frederic Huskens, an executive close to Lion Capital. The position of Belgian general manager had been vacant for several months. Didier Maclaine Pont remains general manager of Bever Zwerfsport, which is continuing to expand in the Netherlands, with three store openings so far this year and several more scheduled. Under Emiel Lathouwers, the group had been seeking new takeover targets in other European countries, but the next move might well be the opening of AS Adventure stores in France (stay tuned).
