Pentland Group
We are a family business building and delivering positive brands in sports, outdoor and fashion.
Our businesses are changing rapidly, but our people and our values remain at the heart of what we do. Pentland Group has annual sales of $8 billion USD and our businesses employ over 76,000 people.
Our businesses
Pentland Brands is the name behind some of the world’s best sports, outdoor and lifestyle brands. It owns Speedo, Berghaus, Canterbury, Endura, ellesse, SeaVees, Red Or Dead and Mitre. It is the UK licensee for Kickers. Its products are available in over 190 countries and are sold either directly or by licensees and distributors.
Pentland Group holds a 51.89% share in JD, the UK’s leading retailer of branded sportswear, fashion and outdoor clothing and equipment. JD employs over 75,000 people, operates in 38 territories and has over 3,400 stores.
JD is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is managed as an independent operation by the JD Board of Directors.
In 2018, Pentland Group and the Lacoste Group set up a 50:50 joint venture business to manage the design, production and manufacturing of Lacoste’s footwear globally. This joint venture business demonstrates the strength of the long-standing relationship between Pentland Group and the Lacoste Group, which first-started in 1991.
Group history
The Liverpool Shoe Company is founded, selling fashion shoes to UK retailers.
We start to manufacture shoes and continue to grow the business.
We are one of the first European companies to source shoes in Asia, opening an office in Hong Kong, which allows us to accelerate growth.
In 1964, the Liverpool Shoe Company is floated on the London Stock Exchange.
The company name is changed to Pentland Industries Ltd and sells skateboards, shoes, handbags, luggage and sportswear.
We acquire a 55.5% stake in Reebok USA Ltd Inc for $77,500. The combined Reebok businesses are floated on the US Stock Exchange in 1985.
Pentland is appointed as the UK Distributor for ellesse & Kickers.
Pentland Industries Ltd changes its name to Pentland Group.
We acquire an 80% share of Speedo (Europe) Ltd.
The Speedo International and Speedo Australia businesses are bought, and Pentland becomes the worldwide licensee for Lacoste footwear.
We sell our Reebok shares back to Reebok for $416 million, reducing the Group’s shareholding to 13%. By the end of the year we sell our remaining Reebok stake for $315 million.
We acquire the outdoor brand, Berghaus, a 75% stake of Brasher Boot and a 90% share of the Ellesse International business.
We acquire the remaining Ellesse International shares and we acquire Mitre Sports International. We also acquire a 75% stake in Red or Dead.
We re-purchase all publicly held Pentland Group shares and the business returns to being 100% privately owned.
We acquire an additional 20% share of Red or Dead, giving us a 95% stake in the business.
We sign a deal with Groupe Zannier’s Kickers International BV to form a new company, Kickers Worldwide, which is 50% owned.
We sign an agreement to develop and market Ted Baker branded footwear. We also acquire the remaining 25% stake in the Brasher Boot Company Ltd.
Pentland Brands opens its new state-of-the-art head office in London, England.
We acquire a majority share of JD Sports Fashion plc, which operates the JD Sports, size?, Bank and Scotts retail chains in the UK.
We acquire Boxfresh and a share of Hunter Boot Ltd.
We acquire the ‘original’ rugby brand, Canterbury of New Zealand.
We acquire the Californian casual lifestyle sneaker brand, SeaVees.
We establish a 50/50 joint venture footwear business with The Lacoste Group to design and manufacture Lacoste footwear.
We also sell our Ted Baker footwear business (No Ordinary Shoes Limited) to Ted Baker.
We acquire the cycling apparel brand Endura.
We announce the acquisition of Speedo North America, uniting the global Speedo brand.
Awards & recognitions
We are proud to have received awards in recognition of what we do and the great work of our teams. Here are some of our highlights:
– Six Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, the most prestigious UK awards for business performance.
– The International Institute for Management Development Global Family Business International Award, in recognition of our strong commitment to sustainability, human rights and environment throughout our value chain.
– The EY UK Family Business of Excellence Award, celebrating the contribution we have made to the economy and the legacy we are building.
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