Schuh sold to US retailer in £125m deal

Genesco, which is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, sells footwear, headwear, sports apparel and accessories in more than 2,285 retail outlets in the US and Canada under the Journeys, Journeys Kids, Shi by Journeys, Underground Station, Lids, Johnston & Murphy and Dockers footwear fascias.

As part of the sale, the Scottish-based footwear retailer will distribute £37.3m of the sale proceeds to its staff .

“We are delighted to become part of Genesco. This partnership marks a significant step change for Schuh as we embark on our objectives to accelerate our growth plans and expand our network throughout the UK,” said Schuh managing director Colin Temple.

“Schuh has gained significant market share in recent years due to a strong product assortment and a growing store base. We believe that joining forces with Genesco will help to further distinguish our concepts from the competition and deliver substantial strategic synergies.

“Importantly, we are very pleased to be able to distribute £37.3 million to our employees whose hard work and dedication has been instrumental to Schuh’s success.”

Robert J. Dennis chairman, president and chief executive of Genesco added: “Schuh provides us with an immediate and established retail presence in the United Kingdom, a highly experienced international management team, and improved insight into global fashion trends. The concept is similar to Journeys in customer demographics, product offering and operating philosophy, so it is a business we know and understand.”

The Schuh board said it believes the deal represents an important milestone for the business and provides opportunities to accelerate its growth.

Schuh will also donate up to £7m from the transaction proceeds to a newly established charitable foundation, The Schuh Trust.

For the full- year ended March 27, 2011, Schuh reported net sales of approximately £164m. The company was founded in in Edinburgh 30 years ago and has 2,827 staff.

Schuh operates 59 stores in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, 16 concessions in Republic stores and sells footwear online via its website.