VF CORP. ACQUIRES PERFORMANCE APPAREL BRAND ICEBREAKER

VF Corporation has acquired New Zealand-based performance apparel company Icebreaker Holdings. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to be completed early in 2018.

The Icebreaker brand was founded in 1995 on the belief that “nature always has a better solution,” and its entire product assortment is based on Merino wool, plant-based fibers, and recycled fibers. Its “farm to garment” approach uses Merino wool sourced from the most sustainable and ethical Merino farms in New Zealand. Icebreaker has 340 full-time employees and its products are sold in 47 countries through wholesale channels and branded retail and e-commerce platforms.

“Bringing the Icebreaker brand into the VF portfolio is a special opportunity,” said Steve Rendle, chairman, president, and chief executive officer of VF Corporation. “Its natural fiber focus is an ideal complement to our SmartWool brand, which also features Merino in its clothing and accessories. Together, the SmartWool and Icebreaker brands create an advantaged position for VF as a leader in the growing and underpenetrated natural fiber category. We will have unmatched capabilities that will strengthen our ability to create innovative and sustainable natural fiber products across our brand portfolio, especially in VF’s Outdoor and Workwear brands.”

“I founded Icebreaker to offer a natural choice to adventurers, and to build a global brand from New Zealand,” added Jeremy Moon, founder of Icebreaker Holdings. “Our partnership with VF provides us with the largest platform in the world to tell our story, access new markets and reach new consumers at an accelerated pace. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our global Icebreaker brand team and for our wool suppliers to introduce a whole new universe of consumers to the benefits of sustainably farmed, ethically sourced, New Zealand Merino wool.”