Sri Lanka’s Hela and Authentic Brands Group announce outerwear partnership for Reebok
Daily FT: Authentic Brands Group (Authentic), a global brand development, marketing, and entertainment platform, today announced a long-term partnership with Focus Brands, the brand licensing division of Hela Apparel Holdings PLC, for Reebok.
Through the partnership, Focus Brands will design, manufacture and distribute Reebok-branded outerwear products across the UK and Europe.
“We look forward to expanding our relationship with Focus Brands and Hela to build Reebok’s presence in the premium, technical outerwear category across the UK and Europe,” said Authentic President, Lifestyle – EMEA and India Henry Stupp. “This partnership will elevate the brand’s offerings and bring a fresh, innovative approach to our product lineup, enhancing our appeal to consumers and solidifying our market position.”
Focus Brands will serve as Reebok’s partner in the UK and Europe for its outerwear category, which covers a wide range of products for men, women, and kids, including outdoor jackets, soft shells, bonded fleeces and padded jackets. The products will be sold across speciality retailers, department stores and e-commerce platforms in the region.
“Our team has been working closely with Authentic Brands Group for the past three years as the brand licensing partner for Nautica in the UK and Europe,” said Focus Brands CEO Ray Evans. “This agreement with Reebok is an exciting opportunity to further strengthen our relationship with the Authentic team, and we are looking forward to bolstering Reebok’s presence in the outerwear category through a strategically structured long-term plan, capitalising on the Hela Group’s manufacturing capabilities.”
The partnership marks the expansion of Focus Brands’ existing strategic relationship with Authentic Brands, as well as the first major milestone for the Hela Group since its acquisition of Focus Brands in January 2024. The new licensing agreement with Reebok is a further step forward in the Group’s strategy to grow Focus Brands into a world-leading brand management company supported by the Hela Group’s agile manufacturing solutions and sustainable apparel solutions.
OSL take:
The strength and growth of Sri Lanka’s apparel industry is evident by the partnerships and collaboration formed between local businesses and foreign brands. Sri Lanka’s apparel industry has been greatly benefited by the many trade agreements as well as trade concessions enjoyed by Sri Lanka with other countries. With Sri Lanka on the path to further strengthening its trade ties, the country’s apparel industry would be further benefited by it. Realizing the growing business potential in Sri Lanka’s apparel industry, the government of Sri Lanka has also formulated incentive schemes and dedicated investment zones to attract foreign businesses/investments to the industry. Given the growth and profits recorded by local businesses engaged in the apparel industry, foreign businesses/investors could confidently explore the growing opportunities in the industry. Foreign businesses could also look at forming partnerships or joint ventures with local businesses in the apparel industry with the aim of further expansion.