DENVER — Outdoor apparel giant VF Corp. on Wednesday struck a deal to sell its Supreme streetwear clothes brand for $1.5 billion cash to French fashion eyewear retailer EssilorLuxottica.
VF, headquartered in downtown Denver, announced the sale, saying that even though Supreme has been growing — particularly in China and South Korea — it didn’t have synergies with VF’s other apparel and shoe brands, which include Vans, The North Face, Timberland, Smartwool and others. Selling it to other owners made financial sense for VF.
“Alongside the other notable brands in EssilorLuxottica’s portfolio, Supreme and its talented team will be well-positioned for continued success,” said VF CEO Bracken Darrell, in a written statement. “While we will always look to adjust the VF portfolio from time to time, this transaction gives us increased balance sheet flexibility. It also supports our overall program to better position the company for long-term growth and more normalized debt levels.”
The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2024.
Supreme runs a digital-first sales business but has 17 stores in the U.S., Asia and Europe.
> Read the full story at the Denver Business Journal.
