Winner Sports, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kishore Biyani-promoted Pantaloon Retail, has tied-up with US-based lifestyle footwear and apparel maker Skechers to licence and distribute its products in India.
Winner Sports will licence and distribute Skechers footwear and apparel through Future Group's retail format like Planet Sports, the US company said in a statement here.
Planet sports, a leading multi-brand sports lifestyle chain with over 65 stores, sells lifestyle products, sportswear and equipment across all categories and already has tie-ups with brands like Speedo, Reebok, Nike, Adidas and Puma.
"Winner Sports will launch Skechers in India in November with select styles from men’s and women’s lines. Skechers Kids will be added to the collection in 2010," the statement said.
Skechers also said its apparel will be produced within India and is expected to debut in Spring 2010.
The tie-up with the US company is yet another step in Future group's plans to grow the sports and lifestyle segment to a Rs-1,000 crore business over the next few years.
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"We are looking at building up a big sports business. We believe the category of sports alone could be a Rs 1,000-crore business in the next 3-4 years," Biyani had said in a recent interview.
The statement quoted Skechers President Michael Greenberg as saying, "We believe India will contribute to international growth and positively impact our business in the next two to three years."
Winner Sports CEO Ravdeep Singh said, "We look forward to leveraging our lifestyle and retail experience to make the brand a great success here."