Itochu Corporation, headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo, and Minoya Co., Ltd., based in Gifu-shi, Gifu, announced that they had established Converse Apparel Co., Ltd., a joint venture aimed at strengthening sales of Converse brand apparel products for sale in Japan.
In the market deployment of the Converse brand in Japan, Itotchu, which owns the trademark right, undertakes branding and marketing, with Converse Japan Co., Ltd. being the master licensee, by cooperating with sublicensees including Converse Footwear Co., Ltd.. Itotchu and Minoya have been contributing to improving the value of the Converse brand in the Japanese market for 20 years since concluding a sublicensing agreement on casual wear in 1993.
The companies established the new company “with the belief that collaborations with footwear providing the core items are more necessary than ever for continuing to maximize the two strengths of the Converse brand: its more than 100 years of history and its support from a wide range of consumers, in the apparel industry which has a high number of competing brands.”
By further strengthening cooperation with Converse Japan and Converse Footwear, Converse Apparel will enter new sales channels such as store operation and sports distribution, while also increasing projects linked with footwear. In this way the company will aim to achieve retail sales of 15 billion yen in three years.”
