Lacoste to form venture with Pentland Group

Lacoste is stepping it up, literally. In an effort to grow their footwear business, the French label is partnering with Britain's Pentland Group, their longtime global licensee, to form a new joint venture. The move is part of their plan to better integrate with their licensee partners, which also includes Procter & Gamble Prestige for fragrances, Movado Group for watches and Charmant Group for eyewear. Lacoste has been in partnership with Pentland Group since 1991.

The venture will be based out of Pentland's headquarters in London. Pentland will handle production and distribution for footwear in Britain, while Lacoste will continue to handle distribution in its main territories.

Lacoste forms new venture with Pentland Group to grow shoe business

In a statement, Thierry Guibert, president of Lacoste Group, said the venture is fully in line with the group’s “strategic project which aims to promote the brand’s prestige and optimize the coordination of all product categories, thus reinforcing the Lacoste style everywhere in the world.”

Things have really turned around at Lacoste under Guibert, who, along with creative director Felipe Oliviera Baptista, have aimed at making the brand more street style friendly and expanding the customer base. Guibert, who has been in his role for over two years, has increased profits at the company, whose revenues are already at a robust 2.5 billion dollars. This latest partnership can only help their continued positive trajectory.

photo:via Lacoste.com