German footwear retailer Deichmann has expressed interest in acquiring the rights to the shoe brand of recently bankrupt Esprit. The two companies have been cooperating since 2019. Deichmann has made it clear that its offer is only for the rights to the brand, not the company's operational business, writes Worldfootwear.com.
Deichmann has been collaborating with Esprit since 2019, and the two companies will jointly develop shoe collections in 2020. The opportunity to acquire the licensing rights was granted to Deichmann at short notice, and negotiations are currently ongoing to acquire the Esprit brand. Men's, women's and children's shoes were produced under the Esprit brand.
Esprit Europe GmbH and six subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy in May 2024. Esprit is expected to close all 56 of its stores in Germany by the end of the year, resulting in the loss of about 1300 jobs.
The brand rights associated with Esprit's European operations are to be sold. A preliminary agreement has been reached between the company's creditors and British investor Alteri, owner of CBR Fashion, which owns brands including Cecil and Street One. However, the slow progress of the deal has left Esprit scrambling for new potential buyers.
In 2023, Germany's Deichmann achieved record gross sales of €8,7 billion, with sales in Germany growing by 9% to almost €2,8 billion. The company operates around 4700 stores worldwide, of which 1400 are in Germany.
Subscribe and follow the Shoes Report news in our official Telegram channel
Rating |