SKECHERS Signs Licensing Agreement with Li & Fung USA to Develop Fitness Apparel Lines
MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- SKECHERS USA, Inc. (NYSE:SKX), a global leader in the footwear industry and the number two footwear brand in the United States,* today announced that it has signed a multi-year licensing agreement with LF USA, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-headquartered multinational Li & Fung Limited, to produce a SKECHERS Fitness apparel and accessories collection for men and women. The offering will include Shape-ups, Tone-ups and SKECHERS Resistance-branded activewear; outerwear and performance-related accessories.
The SKECHERS Fitness Apparel collection will build on the success of SKECHERS Fitness Footwear, which now includes technical running collections as well as styles designed for training and all-day wear. LF USA's Regatta division will design, produce, distribute and market the collection, which is planned for a 2012 launch in department store, sporting goods and independent retailers in the United States.
"SKECHERS Fitness has grown from a single style into a performance running line, training line, and an everyday toning line," said Michael Greenberg, president of SKECHERS. "With our partner as LF USA, part of the world's largest sourcing company, we look forward to coming together as two industry leaders and capitalizing on the great potential that we believe the SKECHERS Fitness brand has for our consumers."
"SKECHERS Fitness is an innovative, athletic lifestyle brand with strong consumer appeal," said Rick Darling, president of LF USA. "With its unique performance features, SKECHERS Fitness is changing the athletic footwear landscape and the way people incorporate fitness into their daily lives. We see tremendous opportunities to build on the brand's solid foundation as we bring consumers a new, differentiated performance apparel collection."
The agreement is the latest in a diverse range of partnerships that SKECHERS has established to produce SKECHERS-branded products, which include children's apparel, bags, sunglasses, legwear, medical scrubs and luggage. The Company is currently negotiating with additional licensees, both domestic and abroad, and continues to seek partnerships and opportunities that will bring the SKECHERS brand to new product segments around the globe.
About SKECHERS USA, Inc.
SKECHERS USA, Inc., based in Manhattan Beach, California, designs, develops and markets a diverse range of footwear for men, women and children under the SKECHERS name, as well as under several uniquely branded names. SKECHERS footwear is available in the United States via department and specialty stores, Company-owned SKECHERS retail stores and its e-commerce website, and in over 100 countries and territories through the Company's global network of distributors and subsidiaries in Canada, Brazil, Chile, and across Europe, as well as through joint ventures in Asia. For more information, please visit www.skechers.com.
About LF USA
LF USA is a subsidiary of Li & Fung Limited (SEHK:494), the Hong Kong-headquartered multinational group; and is recognized as the world's leader in consumer goods design, development, sourcing and distribution. It manages the supply chain for retailers and brands worldwide from about 240 offices and distribution centers in more than 40 economies spanning across the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia. Through its three interconnected business networks -- trading, logistics and distribution -- the Group offers a spectrum of services that covers the entire end-to-end supply chain. Corporate website: www.lifung.com
*Sporting Goods Intelligence, June 21, 2010
This announcement may contain forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, any statement that may predict, forecast, indicate or simply state future results, performance or achievements, and can be identified by the use of forward looking language such as "believe," "anticipate," "expect," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "project," "will be," "will continue," "will result," "could," "may," "might," or any variations of such words with similar meanings. Any such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences include international, national and local general economic, political and market conditions including the ongoing global economic slowdown and market instability; entry into the highly competitive performance footwear market; sustaining, managing and forecasting costs and proper inventory levels; losing any significant customers, decreased demand by industry retailers and cancellation of order commitments due to the lack of popularity of particular designs and/or categories of products; maintaining brand image and intense competition among sellers of footwear for consumers; anticipating, identifying, interpreting or forecasting changes in fashion trends, consumer demand for the products and the various market factors described above; sales levels during the spring, back-to-school and holiday selling seasons; and other factors referenced or incorporated by reference in SKECHERS' Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 and SKECHERS' Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2011. The risks included here are not exhaustive. SKECHERS and LF USA operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and the companies cannot predict all such risk factors, nor can the companies assess the impact of all such risk factors on their respective businesses or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Moreover, reported results should not be considered an indication of future performance.
Source: SKECHERS USA, Inc.
Released Jun 13, 2011 • 9:00 am EDT