Designer Brands acquires footwear brand Topo Athletic

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Dec 20, 2022

Designer Brands Inc. announced on Wednesday the acquisition of Topo Athletic, expanding the company's reach into the performance athletic and outdoor footwear categories.

Topo offers footwear designed for running, walking, hiking and overall comfort, and is already recognized across the U.S. and internationally for its distinctive, award-winning fit and feel.

Topo joins Designer Brands portfolio of owned brands, which includes Vince Camuto, Jessica Simpson, Crown Vintage, Mix No. 6, Lucky Brand and Kelly & Katie, among others. The acquisition will allow Designer Brands to grow in the athletic and athleisure space, alongside the company's previously announced Le Tigre acquisition.

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As part of the acquisition, Topo's founder and CEO, Tony Post, will remain with the company as CEO and will report to Bill Jordan, president of Designer Brands.

"Topo represents another exciting growth opportunity for Designer Brands and further propels us to our goal of doubling sales of our owned brands by 2026," said Jordan. "Tony Post's visionary leadership reminds us why the best athletic shoes must deliver a better experience, so our customers become passionate about our brands. Designer Brands continues to control its destiny with more than 30 million customers in its loyalty programs, more than 700 points of distribution and three online platforms that total more than $1 billion in sales.”

Topo was founded by Post, in 2012. Previously, he was senior vice president of product and marketing at The Rockport Company. Topo also served as CEO of Vibram USA, managing both the U.S. sole business and launching Vibram FiveFingers.

"Topo's focus on helping people achieve healthy lifestyle goals aligns perfectly with Designer Brands' mission to inspire self-expression," said Post. "We found synergy with their management team from our first meeting. They understand our brand mission, they support our strategy and focus around specialty retail and they're excited about our growing global footprint. Nothing really changes in our strategy, distribution direction or the management team. Designer Brands brings a deep set of resources that will help Topo continue to grow, innovate and deliver a better experience for our customers for years to come.”

Designer Brands most recently recorded a year-over-year quarterly sales increase of 25% in Owned Brands and 33% within its Direct-to-Consumer channels. Looking ahead, Designer Brands expects full-year comparable sales to be in the mid-single digits for percentage growth, and diluted earnings per share of  $2.05 - $2.15.