Running shoe and apparel brand Altra was sold Wednesday morning for an undisclosed amount to VF Corporation, the owners of brands such as The North Face, Vans, Timberland, Wrangler, and Lee.
Altra was founded in 2011 with a focus on its Zero-Drop model for trail and road running shoes. The brand has since expanded to more than 1,600 specialty stores and was owned by ICON Health & Fitness.
Terms of the definitive purchase agreement were not disclosed, but according to a press release Altra generated $50 million in revenue during the past 12 months. The transaction is expected to close in April.
“The acquisition of the Altra brand is another example of our efforts to reshape and evolve our portfolio of powerful brands to align with our enterprise value creation model,” said Steve Rendle, chairman, president and chief executive officer of VF Corporation, in a press release. “The active outdoor and performance sector is a large and attractive growth space. The addition of the Altra brand brings to VF a unique and differentiated technical footwear brand and a capability that when applied across VF’s outdoor footwear, direct-to-consumer, and international platforms will serve as a catalyst for growth.”
Terry Schalow, executive director of the Running Industry Association, sees the move as only a positive for Altra and the running industry as a whole.
“We like this move,” Schalow told Runner’s World. “What I know about VF Corporation portfolio is that they are leaders in in their respective markets. It’s not just dollars and cents, they really look to not just add a financially strong brand, but also a brand with a unique culture that is outdoor based and that has a humanity in it and in its culture.”
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Altra has grown leaps and bounds since its creation as a startup by founder Golden Harper, who first used Altra Footwear Brand Sold to Owners of North Face, Timberland. Harper was unsuccessful lobbying shoe companies with his take on the minimalist shoe concept with a wide toe-box, so he offered his shoe design to individual runners and grew to the brand to one of the most well-known in the running market.
“This does nothing but help Altra," Schalow said. "It creates a level of support they haven’t had in the past and access to resources they’ve never had before, and this will ultimately benefit the whole running channel.”
A Part of Hearst Digital Media Runner’s World and Bicycling, and he specializes in writing and editing human interest pieces while also covering health, wellness, gear, and fitness for the brand. His work has previously been published in Men’s Health.
