G-III Apparel Group Ltd said it has bought certain assets, including 116 outlet stores, from Wilsons The Leather Experts for about $22.3 million in cash and raised its 2009 outlook to reflect the acquisition. The assets acquired include $18.5 million in inventory, distribution center operations and the Wilsons name and other related trademarks and trade names.


Morris Goldfarb, G-III’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said, “We are excited about this acquisition, which will enable us to have a significant vertical retail operation. We expect to be able to leverage our strong portfolio of brands and our sourcing expertise to re-merchandise the Wilsons stores in order to improve sales and increase margins. Through carefully segregating our retail assortment from our wholesale offerings, we believe we can reenergize the Wilsons outlet stores under our direction without conflict to our existing customer base. We expect to be able to seamlessly create a vertical retail organization and move quickly to realize the benefits of that structure.“


The Company noted that Joel Waller, former Chief Executive Officer of Wilsons The Leather Experts, would return as President of G-III’s outlet store division. Mr. Waller will lead approximately 900 employees in store operations, merchandising, distribution, real estate, human resources and accounting in Minneapolis, Minnesota.


Goldfarb continued, “We believe that there is an excellent opportunity to return this business to improved levels of profitability and to place it on a growth trajectory. During a thirty year business relationship with Joel Waller, I have developed a profound level of confidence in Joel and believe that he will prove to be an excellent leader for an organization and a concept with which he is already deeply familiar.“


Wilsons said the sale was part of its strategy to obtain capital to be used in the launch of its new mall accessories store concept, and that it will change its name to PreVu Inc. In February, Wilsons, a specialty retailer of leather outerwear, said it was closing 160 mall stores and remodeling its remaining 100 mall stores to its new concept.