NEW YORK — Jordache Enterprises has acquired the Earl Jean brand from VF Corp.
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Jordache and a group of private investors purchased the women’s and men’s denim-based brand in a deal that was finalized on Thursday, although terms were not disclosed.
“We were looking for a brand like Earl,” said Liz Berlinger, president of Jordache Enterprises. “We are looking to expand our roster of premium brands and brands that appeal to the department store venue and Earl had a lot of factors that represent that idea well. They were the original creators of premium denim, but over the past few years, it somehow lost its mark with denim as its priority. We want to bring it back to where it started.”
In January, VF Corp. signed a letter of intent to sell its Earl Jean brand to a privately held New York-based apparel company, which it did not identify. VF acquired Earl Jean in 2003 as part of its purchase of Nautica Enterprises. The brand generated about $13 million in sales, including income from four Earl Jean branded stores. Berlinger said these stores will close.
For complete coverage, see Monday’s issue of WWD.