logo
Aqua Leisure Recreation Rebrands as Helio Outdoors

Aqua Leisure Recreation Rebrands as Helio Outdoors

Yahoo7 hours ago

Leading South Boston-based manufacturer and marketer of pool floats, marine towable rafts, snowshoes, and swimming pool parts evolves to meet growing consumer interest in outdoor recreation.
55-year history of manufacturing excellence paired with new brand-centric leadership team provides platform for new product innovation, wider product assortment.
Legacy of retail channel strength, prolific new product development and global sourcing sophistication provides platform for growth.
STOUGHTON, Mass., June 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The company formerly known as Aqua Leisure Recreation announces it has rebranded as Helio Outdoors (HelioOutdoors.com). Founded in 1970 in Stoughton, Mass., Helio Outdoors is a collection of category leading brands in the outdoor recreation space, including Aqua®, Airhead®, Inyo Pools™, Purleine™ and Yukon Charlies®. The rebrand provides clarity of purpose as a house of brands serving a growing outdoor recreation category estimated at $109 billion in the U.S. in 2024.1
With a product portfolio spanning pool floats, water toys, swim gear, marine towables, snow shoes and pool parts, Helio Outdoors products are sold at mass merchandise retailers such as Walmart® and Target®, as well as sporting good retailers like Dick's®, Academy Sports & Outdoors®, and others. Additionally, Helio brands products can be purchased directly online at Amazon® as well as its own direct-to-consumer websites.
'This is an incredible opportunity for us to reorganize in a manner that provides clarity to our retail partners and to the consumers choosing our products,' said Carmen Evola, chief executive officer at Helio Outdoors. 'The Aqua Leisure moniker served us well for more than half a century, but as we introduce more rigor to product innovation and brand building, we found it prudent to define more clearly who we are as a house of brands. Helio Outdoors is the perfect identity for a platform of companies with a shared purpose to empower people to and get outside to enjoy Outdoor for Life™.'
The U.S. outdoor recreation products sector is estimated to grow at a 6.95% CAGR, adding more than $70 billion in sales between 2024 – 2031.2
_______________1 U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 20242 U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
About Helio Outdoors (FKA: Aqua Leisure Recreation, LLC): Founded in 1970, Helio Outdoors is a leading marketer and manufacturer of consumer goods products serving the outdoor recreation category under owned brands Aqua®, Airhead®, Inyo Pools™, Pureline™ and Yukon Charlies®. Privately held and headquartered in Stoughton, Mass., with regional offices in Denver and Orlando, Helio Outdoors stands on pillars of quality, accessibility, and adventure, to provide quality products for athletes, water lovers, adventure seekers, children learning to swim, and everyone looking to enjoy the outdoors. For more information, visit HelioOutdoors.com.
Contact:
Emma BuschleEmma.Buschle@llyc.global

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

This fast-food chain scored best in customer satisfaction — again, survey says
This fast-food chain scored best in customer satisfaction — again, survey says

Miami Herald

timean hour ago

  • Miami Herald

This fast-food chain scored best in customer satisfaction — again, survey says

Grabbing takeout has gotten more expensive, but customers' loyalty to a certain chicken chain remains unshaken, according to the American Customer Satisfaction Index. Atlanta-based Chick-fil-A leads in customer satisfaction, besting its quick-service industry rivals for the 11th year in a row, the ACSI said in its 2025 Restaurant and Food Delivery Study. Known for its original chicken sandwich, the chain held steady with an ACSI score of 83 despite seeing its 'slowest growth' in U.S. sales in 20 years, according to the index. The report, published Tuesday, June 17, was based on 16,381 surveys conducted over 12 months ending in March 2025, the index said. Individual scores are reported on a 0-100 scale. McClatchy News reached out to Chick-fil-A for comment June 18 and was awaiting a response. For the study, the ACSI asked customers about their experiences with the nation's largest companies, including quick-service, full-service, and 'an aggregate category consisting of 'all other'' restaurants. Customer satisfaction among quick-service (aka fast-food) restaurants remained unchanged from last year, holding steady with an ACSI score of 79, according to the report. Some chains did better than others at keeping customers happy, however. Panda Express jumped 4% to an ACSI score of 80, tying with Starbucks for second place, the report says. Arby's finished in third with a ACSI score of 79, a 1% dip from the year before. Texas-based KFC saw the biggest slide, falling 5% from 81 to 77, according to the study. The ACSI cited competitors' ability to adapt to changing customer preferences more quickly. 'According to ACSI data, customer assessments of both menu variety and food quality for KFC have declined substantially,' the report says. McDonald's landed in last place with an ACSI score of 70, falling 1% from the year before, per the report. The burger giant recently announced plans to extend its late-night hours in a push to boost sales. It reported a 3.6% drop in U.S. store sales in the first quarter of 2025, marking 'its worst performance since the pandemic,' GlobalData reported. Chick-fil-A remained a favorite in the chicken chain category and earned high marks regionally, showing mass appeal with customers in the South and West, according to the ACSI report. However, it tied with Wisconsin-based Culver's for the No. 1 spot in the Midwest, results show. Overall customer satisfaction with fast-food chains was based on benchmarks, including order accuracy and the helpfulness of restaurant staff, the study showed. 'Accuracy of food order and quality of mobile app lead the way at 85, both down 1% year over year,' according to the report. 'Mobile app reliability is 1% lower at 84, matching beverage quality, staff courtesy and helpfulness, food quality, and website satisfaction.'

Greedy restaurant slammed by internet over hidden living wage fee added to bill
Greedy restaurant slammed by internet over hidden living wage fee added to bill

New York Post

time2 hours ago

  • New York Post

Greedy restaurant slammed by internet over hidden living wage fee added to bill

A disgruntled patron posted a receipt from a recent trip to a restaurant that charged its guests a mandatory 'living wage fee' on Instagram threads — and the internet was incensed. 4 Despite the clarification at the bottom of the receipt, the original user captioned their post: 'WTF is a living wage fee?' @ / Instagram Tipping culture has long been a point of contention for Americans, and as prices continue to rise, the practice has become an even more controversial topic. But now it seems that businesses are taking things too far by tacking on extra fees such as this one — and people aren't happy about it. 4 'It's your job,' respond many in this camp when it comes to tip-demanding employees. FornStudio – 'Price increase without having to update the menu,' claimed one reply on the post. '[This] means I'm never eating at that restaurant again,' said another. Meanwhile, another commenter proposed an entirely separate issue of debate: the pooling of tips. 'If I wanna tip a person, I wanna tip that individual, not the entire team. This is unfair to the server and to me.' However, a few lonely restaurant-goers cut the restaurant, which remained unnamed in the post — and the growing industry trend — some slack, and fired back at fellow commenters. 'Y'all have been asking for no tipping, this is what it looks like. It could reflect in drink/food prices, but then you all would say the place was too expensive. No one is trying to trick you — if they were transparent about the service fee, STFU,' one empassioned viewer responded. 4 'Consumers pay wages via prices,' one user commented, acknowledging the lack of consequence for this specific charge as opposed to increased menu prices. MargJohnsonVA – 'Just include [the fee] in the cost of the food and drinks, like the rest of the world is doing, and pay the workers properly. Sincerely, a guy from Europe,' one aggrieved commenter suggested under the post. This response was the sole sentiment that united incensed restaurant patrons on both sides of the debate. 'Mind your European business,' advised one reply, while another said: 'Hey, stay out of our insanity!' For some small, family-owned restaurants, implementing charges like this living wage fee might allow the business to stay afloat and support their employees — especially amid a cost-of-living crisis. Durham, North Carolina-based Lula & Sadie's is one spot that charges a living wage fee to combat 'rising overhead costs, slim industry profit margins and a minimum wage that won't budge,' per the family-operated restaurant's website. 'The fee is transparently listed on our menus, website and posted around the restaurant.' Though local laws vary greatly in terms of tipping and charging policies in restaurants, New York City Consumer and Worker Protection rules, state that 'restaurants cannot charge a surcharge or other fee in addition to listed food or beverage prices,' but they can 'charge a bona fide service charge, but only if the charge is conspicuously disclosed to consumers before food is ordered.' 4 With general costs rising, both businesses and consumers struggle to meet new standards. Kittiphan – Examples of 'bona fide service charges' include splitting a meal on multiple plates, minimums per person and mandatory gratuity for large dining parties. That being said, 'living wage fees' are often considered service charges, depending on how they're disclosed and absorbed by the business. 'There is no law in New York State that specifically prohibits automatic gratuities. However, it is incumbent upon any restaurant including an automatic gratuity charge to provide—in advance—clear and conspicuous notice that an automatic gratuity charge will be levied and all terms associated with the automatic charge. If consumers are not provided advanced notice, [they] may have a claim under the NYS Deceptive Acts & Practices law, ' New York State's Division of Consumer Protection told News10NBC.

Musk's X sues New York over requirement to show how social media platforms handle problematic posts

time2 hours ago

Musk's X sues New York over requirement to show how social media platforms handle problematic posts

NEW YORK -- NEW YORK (AP) — Elon Musk 's X sued Tuesday to try to stop New York from requiring reports on how social media platforms handle problematic posts — a regulatory approach that the company successfully challenged in California. New York's law, which Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul signed late last year, is poised to take effect later this year. X maintains that the measure impinges on free speech rights and on a 1996 federal law that, among other things, lets internet platforms moderate posts as they see fit. New York is improperly trying 'to inject itself into the content-moderation editorial process' by requiring 'politically charged disclosures' about it, Bastrop, Texas-based X Corp. argues in the suit. 'The state is impermissibly trying to generate public controversy about content moderation in a way that will pressure social media companies, such as X Corp., to restrict, limit, disfavor or censor certain constitutionally protected content on X that the state dislikes,' says the suit, filed in federal court in Manhattan. New York Attorney General Letitia James' office didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the case. The law requires social media companies to report twice a year on whether and how they define hate speech, racist or extremist content, disinformation and some other terms. The platforms also have to detail their content moderation practices and data on the number of posts they flagged, the actions they took, the extent to which the offending material was seen or shared, and more. Sponsors Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal and Assembly Member Grace Lee, both Democrats, have said the measure will make social media more transparent and companies more accountable. The law applies broadly to social media companies. But X is among those that have faced intense scrutiny in recent years, and in a 2024 letter to an X lobbyist, the sponsors said the company and Musk in particular have a 'disturbing record' that 'threatens the foundations of our democracy.' The lawmakers wrote before Musk became, for a time, a close adviser and chainsaw-wielding cost-cutter in Republican President Donald Trump's administration. The two billionaires have since feuded and, perhaps, made up. Since taking over the former Twitter in 2022, Musk, in the name of free speech, has dismantled the company's Trust and Safety advisory group and stopped enforcing content moderation and hate speech rules that the site followed. He has restored the accounts of conspiracy theorists and incentivized engagement on the platform with payouts and content partnerships. Outside groups have since documented a rise in hate speech and harassment on the platform. X sued a research organization that studies online hate speech – that lawsuit was dismissed last March. The New York legislation took a page from a similar law that passed in California — and drew a similar lawsuit from X. Last fall, a panel of federal appellate judges blocked portions of the California law, at least temporarily, on free speech grounds. The state subsequently settled, agreeing not to enforce the content-moderation reporting requirements. ___

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store