Wolverine World Wide (NYSE:WWW) shares gain Thursday, on word it has sold Sperry to brand management firm and Reebok owner Authentic Brands Group, as the footwear retailer looks to focus on better performing assets.
Canadian retailer the Aldo Group has been tapped as the brand’s North American operating partner and will be in charge of wholesale, e-commerce and store operations, Authentic said in a news release. Aldo will also work with the brand on footwear design, production and global distribution. It already works closely with Authentic on running brands like Roxy and Brooks Brothers.
The deal will generate $130 million, which Wolverine plans to use to pay down debt, it said.
Wolverine originally acquired Sperry, a 90-year-old brand, in 2012 from Payless ShoeSource owner Collective Brands in a $1.23-billion deal that also included Saucony, Stride Rite and Keds.
Wolverine, which runs a portfolio of apparel and footwear brands that includes Merrell, Hush Puppies and Sweaty Betty, said in May it was seeking strategic alternatives for Sperry after it realized the investments the segment needed would be better served in other parts of its business.
“It just became apparent that Sperry was going to continue to require investment that was going to take away from where we think the upside is,” Wolverine’s then-CEO Brendan Hoffman, said on a call with analysts in May after the company reported fiscal first-quarter earnings.
WWW shares picked up 14 cents, or 1.6%, to $9.10.
