On Holding (ONON, Financial) experienced a dip of 3% today following the announcement that co-CEO Marc Maurer will leave the company in July after 12 years. Martin Hoffmann, the current CFO and co-CEO, will become the sole CEO. The company also announced new appointments for Chief People Officer, Chief Innovation Officer, Chief Communications Officer, and Chief Supply Chain Officer.

Investors are reacting to the departure of Marc Maurer, who played a crucial role in taking the company public in 2021. Despite the broader market downturn in 2022, ONON, under Maurer's leadership, managed a strong rebound, outperforming competitors like Nike (NKE, Financial) and Adidas (ADDYY, Financial).

Innovation has been key to ONON's success, allowing it to surpass NKE, whose product line had become less appealing. Even during 2022's supply chain issues, ONON continued to launch new running styles, gaining traction with online customers and retail partners. While NKE focused on direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales, ONON strengthened its wholesale partnerships, achieving over CHF 1 billion in net sales in this channel, alongside rapid DTC growth.

Maurer is leaving in the midst of ONON's three-year roadmap introduced in late 2023, with goals for 2026 centered on dominating the running footwear market through new product launches. The company aims to expand its Cloudmonster, Cloudsurfer, and Cloudrunner lines, which have already seen 60-140% year-over-year growth in 2024. Additionally, ONON is transitioning into a full sportswear brand, with over CHF 100 million in apparel sales last year.

Despite Maurer's departure, ONON maintains strong momentum, with three consecutive quarters of accelerating growth. The company is ahead of its +26% three-year net sales CAGR target, bolstered by a promising start to 2025. Martin Hoffmann, soon to be the sole CEO, noted that the +27% growth guidance for 2025 is conservative given economic uncertainties, yet preorder data suggests robust growth.

In summary, while Marc Maurer's departure is a setback, ONON continues to deliver strong revenue growth in a challenging economic environment, indicating solid brand loyalty and innovation that can persist under Martin Hoffmann's leadership.