R.G. Barry Corporation, the Dearfoams company, signed a transfer agreement under which it will buy the NCAA College Clogs business from Wolverine World Wide, Inc.
College Clogs(TM) footwear features the embroidered logos and official colors of many major NCAA colleges and universities and is sold through independent and on-line retailers, college bookstores and non-promotional department stores.
“The NCAA licensing program fits nicely with our long-term growth strategy by giving us an entry into the outdoor athletic sports channel,” said Thomas JZ Konecki, R.G. Barry Corporation Senior Vice President Sales, Licensing and Business Development. “This program also allows us to capitalize on a number of our core strengths, such as product design and development, importing and marketing.”
“The market for collegiate licensed products is growing, and we believe that sports marketing giant IMG's recent acquisition of the leading collegiate licensing firm will ultimately accelerate that growth,” added Greg Tunney, R.G. Barry Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer. “It is estimated that total worldwide retail sales for all types of college merchandise last year was in the neighborhood of $3 billion, and we think the NCAA-licensed College Clogs(TM) program will allow us to capture a small piece of that growing global market.”
The companies expect the business transfer to be complete within two weeks.
