MUMBAI: Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd. (ABFRL) announced on Tuesday that it had in-principal approved buying exclusive online and offline rights to the global sportswear brand Reebok for the Indian market.
The deal will be effective once the global ownership of the Reebok brand is transferred from adidas to Authentic Brands Group under a €2.1 billion ($2.37bn) acquisition announced in August.
The deal marks Aditya Birla Fashion’s foray into fast-growing sports and active wear segment, which is expected to grow to $13 billion by financial year 2024 at an annual growth of 14%, the company said.
“India’s leading fashion company, today announced the signing of a long-term licensing agreement, which grants ABFRL exclusive rights to distribute and sell Reebok products through wholesale, e-commerce and Reebok branded retail stores in India and other ASEAN countries,” a company press stated.
“Reebok is one of the leading brands in the sporting goods industry globally and has built a very strong presence in the Indian market over the last two decades. In partnership with ABG, we plan to accelerate Reebok’s business in India, combining its global appeal and salience amongst Indian youth. This transaction further strengthens the ABFRL portfolio and increases our ability to engage with consumers across various need spaces,” Ashish Dikshit, managing director at ABFRL, was quoted as saying in the release.
