K-SWISS Announces Race Team Initiative with Stand Up To Cancer

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., March 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- California Sports Company K-SWISS is proud to join with Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), an initiative to accelerate groundbreaking cancer research, on a co-branded footwear and apparel collection.  In addition, K-SWISS and Stand Up To Cancer will launch Team Stand Up To Cancer at key "racing" events throughout the year.  K-SWISS will contribute five dollars from the sale of each specially designed SU2C product to Stand Up To Cancer through December 31, 2013.

K-SWISS will promote the newly launched Team Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C), which rallies supporters to raise funds by participating in their favorite races.  Team recruiting will take place at a variety of running events across the country this year, including regional Rock N' Roll Marathon, Life Time Fitness and Ironman triathlon events.  Participants may opt in to run on behalf of Team SU2C, or may purchase co-branded SU2C/K-SWISS official race gear on-site to show their support.

"Collaborating with Stand Up To Cancer gives us a valuable opportunity to support, and help inspire a movement to save lives," said David Nichols, executive vice-president of K-SWISS. "We are excited to create a unified front across the running community and encourage people, from their first 5k or first triathlon, to race for a world without cancer."

The co-branded collection will include a line of SU2C/K-SWISS product featuring running and lifestyle shoes, performance and triathlon apparel. Product will debut on SU2C's web site at http://store.standup2cancer.org/ in May 2012. K-SWISS will carry all footwear styles online and major retailers, including The Finish Line, will sell the line beginning in August 2012.

"Stand Up To Cancer is about collaboration and acceleration," said Sue Schwartz, co-founder of SU2C and partner at Robertson Schwartz Agency.  "We are excited to work with K-SWISS on this new performance apparel collection, as well as on Team SU2C because it gives us an opportunity to galvanize the public at a grassroots level to generate funds for cancer research.  So stand up, and join the team!" 

For those who wish to participate in the national race team, SU2C has partnered with CrowdRise to offer a custom fundraising page for Team SU2C.  Members will have the option to set up individual or team pages to drive friends and family to donate. K-SWISS will help drive registration and participation in Team SU2C through its extensive networks in the running and triathlon communities.  

About K-SWISS
Founded more than forty years ago in Van Nuys, California, K-Swiss (NASDAQ: KSWS) introduced the first all-leather tennis shoe, the K-Swiss "Classic" in 1966. Since its inception, K-Swiss has rooted itself in California Sport with an aim to be the most inspiring and innovative sports brand in the market. Today the company offers performance and lifestyle footwear and apparel for several categories under its California Sports umbrella including Tennis Heritage, California Fit (Running, Triathlon and Fitness) and California Youth. K-Swiss also designs, develops and markets footwear under the Palladium brand. For more information about K-Swiss, visit www.kswiss.com, @KSwiss on Twitter, and Facebook/KSwiss.

About Stand Up To Cancer:
Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) -- a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), a 501(c) (3) charitable organization -- raises funds to accelerate the pace of groundbreaking translational research that can get new therapies to patients quickly and save lives. SU2C facilitates collaboration among the best and the brightest in the cancer research community. The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) and a Scientific Advisory Committee conduct rigorous, competitive review processes through which SU2C's grantees are selected. By galvanizing the entertainment industry, SU2C generates awareness and builds grassroots support for this new approach to ending cancer.

About CrowdRise:
CrowdRise.com is a crowd-sourced fundraising platform that empowers people who care to raise money for their favorite nonprofit organizations using the most fun and engaging game theory, tools and technology.  Based on the idea that people like to give to people they know, CrowdRise makes fundraising simple by empowering users to turn their friends into a network of donors for any cause. In 2011 CrowdRise topped Mashable's list of "Most Innovative Crowdfunding Platforms" and was named a "Top 25 Best Global Philanthropist" by Barron's. CrowdRise was founded by actor and activist Edward Norton, producer Shauna Robertson, and the founders of Moosejaw, Robert and Jeffro Wolfe.  Thousands of charitable organizations, events, celebrities and every day donors make CrowdRise their home for fundraising. 

Media Contacts:
K-Swiss:
Jennifer Macfarland (818) 706-5136 / [email protected] 
Melanie Dennig (212) 889-1700 / [email protected]  
Stand Up To Cancer:
Misty Espinoza (213) 240-3926 / [email protected]

SOURCE K-Swiss