Coach to Acquire Stuart Weitzman
Posted on January 7, 2015
Coach Inc. has announced it is acquiring Stuart Weitzman Holdings LLC, a luxury footwear brand, from Sycamore Partners. The deal will give Coach a shoe component to its handbags and accessories. Coach says it has agreed to pay as much as $574 million for Stuart Weitzman.
Coach CEO Victor Luis says in the announcement, "Stuart Weitzman is a leading American luxury designer footwear brand with a solid growth trajectory and further significant domestic and international development potential. Importantly, the size, scope and vibrancy of the Stuart Weitzman brand, along with the continuity of its management team, allows for a seamless transition to Coach ownership, as we continue to focus on Coach's brand transformation."
Gisele Bunchen has been the face of Stuart Weitzman for the last two campaigns, including the new Spring 2015 campaign. Mario Testino has photographed the campaigns for the past several years.
Stuart Weitzman, the creative director and executive chairman of Stuart Weitzman Holdings LLC, said in a statement, "We are excited to be working with the Coach team and leveraging its strong infrastructure to help us drive efficiency and expand our product mix to an even broader consumer base worldwide. We also look forward to supporting the Coach team with our technical and merchandising expertise in footwear."
The two luxury brands should benefit from the merger as both can sell and cross-market the other's products. Anna Andreeva, an analyst at Oppenheimer & Co., told Bloomberg that there could as be a halo effect for Coach in Europe. Andreeva says, "There could be some halo effect. In Europe, the brand equity of Stuart Weitzman is substantial."