DSW and Authentic Brands close purchase of Camuto Group

By

Gabriella Lacombe

Published
Nov 7, 2018

DSW and Authentic Brands Group have acquired the operations of Camuto Group for a combined sum of roughly $341 million, securing the Vince Camuto brand and footwear licenses for Jessica Simpson and Lucky Brand.

As part of the acquisition, DSW will acquire Camuto Group's entire global production, sourcing and design infrastructure, including operations in Brazil and China, and a distribution center in New Jersey, as well as the group's working capital of branded inventory and accounts receivable.

In addition, the footwear retailer and Authentic Brands Group have acquired intellectual property rights from several Comuto Group brands, including Vince Camuto, Louise et Cie, Sole Society, CC Corso Como and Enzo Angiolini. DSW will hold 40 percent ownership interest, with ABG owning the remaining 60. 

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Managed by ABG, the property rights partnership will license the newly acquired brands' footwear, handbags and jewelry categories to DSW, and lend new product categories to outside parties in the interest of boosting the brands' lifestyle offerings.

Through this partnership, DSW will also earn licensing royalties from third parties and have access to ABG's brand portfolio, opening the footwear retailer up to future collaborations and greater wholesale opportunities.  

​"To ensure the health of our business for years to come, we needed to think in the long-term and set a course for greater market share by owning a design and sourcing infrastructure to gain greater control of our product assortment," said Roger Rawlins, chief executive officer of DSW Inc. "This acquisition allows us to capture more footwear transactions in new points of sale including at our own industry-leading DSW retail network and now in wholesale, brand-owned direct-to-consumer, as well as in licensing and international franchising."

DSW plans to transition its brand portfolio to the Camuto platform by fiscal 2020, allowing the footwear retailer to grow its brand business to a predicted $1 billion in annual retail sales.