Austin Booth, Director of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (Photo provided)
Outdoor lifestyle company Banded Holdings Inc. of Memphis on Friday named Austin Booth, the outgoing director of the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission, as its next CEO.
Banded Holdings is the parent company of outdoor brands Banded, Avery Outdoors and Thacha, which offer products ranging from waders and boots to decoys, dog vests and field blinds.
Stand announced in November that he was leaving his position as head of the commission as of January 4. Booth, who has led the agency since July 2021, said he was leaving to seek a better work-life balance in the private sector.
“Joining Banded Holdings is an incredible honor,” Booth said in a press release. “As a lifelong enthusiast of the outdoors and hunting traditions, I am excited to lead a company that is at the forefront of equipping hunters and outdoor enthusiasts. »
As head of the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission, Booth oversaw the start of the the largest lake renovation in its 108-year historya one-year project to drain Lake Conway for the construction of new water control structures and fish habitat rehabilitation.
The stand too oversaw a major overhaul of how the commission manages water from green tree reservoirs in wildlife management areas, an approach aimed at preserving duck habitats in the long term.
“Austin is the ideal person to lead Banded Holdings into the future,” Brandon Adams, chairman of the board of directors of Banded Holdings, said in the release. “His leadership, strategic vision and deep connection to the outdoors align perfectly with our mission to provide the highest quality products to hunters and adventurers.”