VF Corporation announced today that Jim Gerson will be taking the reins as President of Reef. Gerson has been with VF Corp since 1986, and most recently served as Vice President of RD&D Soft Goods at The North Face.

Here’s the press release:

Carlsbad, CA – May 26th, 2009 – Reef is pleased to announce the appointment of Jim Gerson, currently Vice President of Apparel at The North Face, as President of Reef-Americas. In his new role, Jim will be responsible for developing the product line and brand strategy for the Reef brand worldwide and for the profitability of Reef-Americas beginning June 1st, 2009.

Gerson joined VF in 1986 as part of the Jantzen business and held progressive sales and merchandising roles leading their swimwear division. In 2000, he became Vice President of Swimwear for VF’s Tommy Hilfiger Licensee business. Gerson joined the The North Face as Vice President, Research, Design and Development and Brand Management in April 2001.

As The North Face grew, Jim transitioned to Vice President RD&D Soft Goods in 2005, overseeing all of the apparel business.

“Jim has spearheaded The North Face’s dedication to product innovation and has been a key contributor to the tremendous success of The North Face throughout his tenure with the brand,” said Stephen Murray, President of VF Action Sports Americas. “His successful background in managing key accounts in sales and leading merchandising initiatives brings to Reef a wide range of knowledge and experience from all angles of the business. I am confident that his expertise will prove to be a great asset to Reef.”

Gerson adds, “Reef is a strong brand with a rich heritage and a history for creating outstanding products. I look forward to sharing my product and brand experience to help Reef reach its full potential.”

Gerson holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Idaho, with a Marketing emphasis in Management. He will transition to his new position at Reef effective June 1.

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Entropy Surfboards, a division of Entropy Sports, Amroy Europe (Amroy) Ltd., and Bayer MaterialScience (BMS) LLC have teamed up to deliver a new line of custom-made surfboards that incorporate carbon nanotubes from BMS.

Entropy Surfboards believes that epoxy systems are the future of and a key ingredient in making a more durable and lively surfboard. For that reason, the company is using Hybtonite®, an advanced epoxy system from Amroy that incorporates Baytubes® carbon nanotubes from BMS, resulting in composite structures that are tougher and more durable than standard epoxy systems. The surfboards combine performance and durability with the traditional feel of a custom-shaped board. The dimensions and weight of the boards will vary per the specifications of each customer.

The basic construction process for surfboards has remained basically unchanged for over 50 years, making customers very particular about how their boards look and feel. The core consists of a type of foam with a stringer made of wood or plastic that spans from the nose to the tail, and is then wrapped in fiberglass. It is the final step that sets Entropy surfboards apart from traditional boards, when the Hybtonite system is used. The incorporation of BMS’ Baytubes carbon nanotubes allows Entropy to achieve increased toughness without sacrificing the flex properties of the board.

The epoxy systems used in Entropy Surfboards, as well as other Entropy Sports high performance products and materials, are lab tested at the Berkeley Composites Lab on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley. Entropy surfboards, featuring various materials, shapes and construction methods, are also tested year round in a variety of surf conditions.

“The Bayer carbon nanotubes increase durability by a factor of two to three, while also decreasing the fatigue that is often seen in traditional boards subjected to everyday conditions,” said Rey Banatao of Entropy. “Because of the benefits they offer, we decided to pursue using carbon nanotubes in our products once they became available and affordable.”

“BMS has succeeded in producing high-quality carbon nanotubes in a cost-effective process,” said Joe Ventura, business development manager, Baytubes carbon nanotubes, Bayer MaterialScience LLC. “As a result, our Baytubes are helping create entirely new materials with revolutionary properties for applications, like the Entropy Surfboard, in numerous fields.”

Bayer MaterialScience LLC is one of the leading producers of polymers and high-performance plastics in North America and is part of the global Bayer MaterialScience business with nearly 15,100 employees at 30 sites around the world and 2008 sales of 9.7 billion euros. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction, medical, and sports and leisure industries.

Bayer Corporation, headquartered in Pittsburgh, is a subsidiary of Bayer AG, an international health care, nutrition and high-tech materials group based in Leverkusen, Germany. In North America, Bayer had 2008 net sales of approximately 8 billion euros (about $12 billion) and employed 17,000 at year end. Bayer’s three subgroups, Bayer HealthCare, Bayer CropScience and Bayer MaterialScience, improve people’s lives through a broad range of essential products that help diagnose, prevent and treat diseases; protect crops and enhance yields; and advance automobile safety and durability. For more information, go to www.bayerus.com.

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Although, Luxxotica, the parent company of Oakley, Ray Ban, Arnette, and others, Q1 sales were down 11.6%, Oakley/Ray Ban sales helped off set the companies weak performance in other sectors.

“The positive sales performance in all markets by Oakley and the success of Ray-Ban’s optical collections only enabled the Group to partially offset the effects of the challenging macro-economic environment, which triggered strong measures by clients to cut inventory levels. Wholesale sales for the period were Euro 501.6 million, compared to Euro 619.6 million (down by 19.0% at current exchange rates and by 19.8% at constant exchange rates). Regarding sales in key geographical regions, Luxottica’s performance was substantially positive in Continental Europe and South America, while sales were down in Southern Europe, North America and the Far East. “

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