Intersport International Corporation (IIC) agreed on a deal to sell 100 percent of The Athlete’s Foot (TAF) retail & e-commerce network to Arklyz Group AG (Arklyz), owner of Intersocks. As part of the deal, “IIC and Arklyz have agreed on close cooperation which will bring synergies and beneficial development for all parties involved.”

The transaction was signed off on June 30 and the closing occurs at the end of July 2021. The parties have agreed not to disclose the financial details of the transaction.

Arklyz will take over the worldwide TAF business, including its trademark rights and franchise agreements. IIC’s CEO Steve Evers said “With Arklyz, a strong operative investor was chosen among different interested parties to ensure that TAF can continue to grow rapidly and successfully. That we have worked closely with Arklyz subsidiary Intersocks for many years has made the decision even easier, and it is our goal to further strengthen this relationship.”

“Building on the successful partnership between IIC and Intersocks, we are very much looking forward to this new chapter of our co-operation,” stated Arklyz owner and CEO, Param Singh.

Since TAF’s franchise rights are often with the respective national Intersport organizations and will remain in place consequently IIC and Arklyz will be in an even closer co-operation in the future. It is also agreed that all the TAF employees will be retained in Amsterdam (Netherlands) and Atlanta, GA.

IIC acquired TAF in 2012 and, since then, “it consistently and successfully expanded it to increase the turnover to U.S. $400 million in 2020.”

TAF has 564 stores in 32 markets, including Europe, the U.S., Mexico, Peru, Kuwait, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, and New Zealand. TAF also operates e-commerce platforms in those markets. TAF global retail sales have seen a robust growth of  “47 percent in the first five months of 2021 versus 2020 and 14 percent versus 2019.”

While IIC has decided to further strengthen its core business and to focus on sports performance retail, Arklyz is seeking to further expand its sports & lifestyle business covering production, brand management, brick and mortar retail, and e-commerce.

Photo courtesy Athletes Foot