MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The SKECHERS Foundation today announced that the organization believes that it will raise over $1.6 million to support children with special needs and education at its ninth SKECHERS Pier to Pier Friendship Walk. Supported by presenting sponsor Nickelodeon and media sponsor NBC4 Southern California, the Manhattan Beach event on October 29 will feature a team of new and returning entertainment, sport, fitness and kids’ celebrities including Sugar Ray Leonard, Brooke Burke-Charvet, Tommy Lasorda, and Denise Austin.
“This event has been a growing movement for nine incredible years, each one better and bigger than the last,” said Michael Greenberg, president of SKECHERS and the SKECHERS Foundation. “All of our kids should be celebrated for their unique abilities, and that’s why we gather every year at the SKECHERS Pier to Pier Friendship Walk – to come together and make a difference for thousands. When you look back, the results have been phenomenal – our annual donations have grown from $200,000 in year one to $1.6 million last year, from 1,000 participants to more than 12,000. We’re thrilled, humbled, and can’t wait to do it again this year.”
“The SKECHERS Pier to Pier Friendship Walk has its heart in the right place – from improving education to helping children with special needs,” said legendary boxer and SKECHERS ambassador Sugar Ray Leonard. “For nearly a decade, this event has been about one thing: nurturing and educating our kids. This single event can change their entire year and help shape them into the grown-ups they’ll become – it supports their schools, their activities, builds friendships and builds their confidence. 2017 will make my third year at the Walk, and I’m truly honored to be part of this.”
“We’re back to support the SKECHERS Pier to Pier Friendship Walk because we’re a firm believer in the positive impact it has on children with special needs and our schools,” said Steve Carlston, president and general manager of NBC4 Southern California. “It’s a wonderful chance for us to spotlight this incredible movement that has changed the tide on how we view and support children throughout our community.”
Since 2009, the SKECHERS Pier to Pier Friendship Walk has educated and inspired thousands to support children with special needs and education. The Walk is a primary source of funding for The Friendship Foundation, which assists children with special needs and their families through one-on-one peer mentoring and social recreational programming such as field trips, summer camps and music classes. The Walk has also helped education foundations rehabilitate and improve schools: updating technology, science labs and libraries; revamping music programs; reducing class sizes; and saving teachers’ jobs. Additionally, the SKECHERS Foundation gives $100,000 in annual scholarships to children, awarding students who have shown financial need and academic, athletic and leadership excellence.
The 2017 Walk will include special performances by NBC’s Little Big Shots’ Kieran Tamondong, America’s Got Talent duo Artyon and Paige, Nickelodeon star Ciara Wilson and dance sensation Larsen Thompson. The 3.4-mile route will begin at the Manhattan Beach Pier at 9AM, where participants will walk to the Hermosa Beach Pier and back.
To register or make a donation, visit skechersfriendshipwalk.com or follow SKECHERS on Facebook (facebook.com/SKECHERSFriendshipWalk) and Twitter (twitter.com/SkechersP2PWalk).
In addition to headlining sponsor Nickelodeon and media sponsor NBC4 Southern California, the SKECHERS Pier to Pier Friendship Walk thanks its sponsors that include: Nickelodeon, NBC4 Southern California, Wells Fargo, Steel Sports, Vertra, The Claudette and Ethan Rickett Care Foundation, Ross, Mattel, Kids Foot Locker, United Legwear, Marshalls, Cushman & Wakefield, Moose Toys, WSS, Caskey & Caskey, Siltanen & Partners Advertising, Continental Development, Northrop Grumman, Equinox, Chevron, and a myriad of other companies who have shown their support to the organization.
ABOUT SKECHERS Foundation
The SKECHERS Foundation was established to provide families around the world with the necessities and skills to succeed in life. In addition to organizing the SKECHERS Pier to Pier Friendship Walk, the SKECHERS Foundation funds tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations that provide education and job training, shoes, clothing, fitness and nutrition guidance to communities in need.
About SKECHERS USA, Inc.
SKECHERS USA, Inc., based in Manhattan Beach, California, designs, develops and markets a diverse range of lifestyle footwear for men, women and children, as well as performance footwear for men and women. SKECHERS footwear is available in the United States and over 160 countries and territories worldwide via department and specialty stores, more than 2,305 SKECHERS Company-owned and third-party-owned retail stores, and the Company’s e-commerce websites. The Company manages its international business through a network of global distributors, joint venture partners in Asia and the Middle East, and wholly-owned subsidiaries in Canada, Japan, throughout Europe and Latin America. For more information, please visit skechers.com and follow us on Facebook (facebook.com/SKECHERS) and Twitter (twitter.com/SKECHERSUSA).
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the Company’s future domestic and international growth, financial results and operations including expected net sales and earnings, its development of new products, future demand for its products, its planned domestic and international expansion, opening of new stores and additional expenditures, and advertising and marketing initiatives. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking language such as “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will result,” “could,” “may,” “might,” or any variations of such words with similar meanings. Any such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences include international economic, political and market conditions including the uncertainty of sustained recovery in Europe; sustaining, managing and forecasting costs and proper inventory levels; losing any significant customers; decreased demand by industry retailers and cancellation of order commitments due to the lack of popularity of particular designs and/or categories of products; maintaining brand image and intense competition among sellers of footwear for consumers, especially in the highly competitive performance footwear market; anticipating, identifying, interpreting or forecasting changes in fashion trends, consumer demand for the products and the various market factors described above; sales levels during the spring, back-to-school and holiday selling seasons; and other factors referenced or incorporated by reference in the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016 and its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended June 30, 2017. The risks included here are not exhaustive. The Company operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and the companies cannot predict all such risk factors, nor can the companies assess the impact of all such risk factors on their respective businesses or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Moreover, reported results should not be considered an indication of future performance.
