After 13 consecutive quarters of declines here, Asics sales increased 4% in North America to ¥19,847 million ($180.1 mm) in Q1 on the strength of an improved Performance Running business, but the region had a loss of ¥1,484 million ($13.5 mm) on reduced gross margin and heavy investment in marketing. It credited a shift in distribution strategy towards strategic accounts and e-commerce for a 1% gain at its large running segment to ¥14.3 billion. Sports Style sell-in for new Gel-Quantum models drove a 21% jump to ¥2.8 billion, and tennis shoe sales boosted the Core Performance category 19% to ¥0.9 ... Log in to view full article.