Stride Rite Corporation

Last updated

Stride Rite
Company type Subsidiary
NYSE:  WWW
Industry Footwear
Predecessor
Founded1919;105 years ago (1919)
Founder
  • Jacob A. Slosberg
  • Philip Green
Headquarters Waltham, Massachusetts, U.S.
Key people
ProductsChildren's shoes
Parent
Website www.striderite.com

Stride Rite, formerly the Stride Rite Corporation and stylized in all lowercase, is an American children's footwear company. The company markets Stride Rite products globally through brand licensee Vida Shoes International. [1]

Contents

History

Founding and early years

Stride Rite was founded in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1919, as the Green Shoe Manufacturing Company (“Green Shoe”) by Jacob A. Slosberg and Philip Green. After founding the company, Green sold his interest to Slosberg twelve years later and Slosberg's sons Samuel and Charles led up the company as the heads of sales and manufacturing respectively. Green Shoe became a public company in 1960 and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

In 1966 Green Shoe adopted the Stride Rite Corporation name to emphasize the brand name of one of its best-known products.[ citation needed ] The name was purchased from Tom Lalonde in 1933. [2]

In 1968 Arnold Hiatt, the son of a Lithuanian immigrant, became president of the firm and sales were $35 million. Hiatt pursued a policy of acquisitions to keep the firm in tune with consumer preferences. [3]

Acquisitions and expansion

Stride Rite's first retail store was opened in 1972. The Sperry Top-Sider and Keds brand names were purchased from Uniroyal in 1979. Stride Rite purchased Toddler University in 1994. [4] During 2005 Stride Rite completed its acquisition of Saucony and in 2006 Stride Rite purchased Robeez. [5]

Hiatt was instrumental in bringing in socially conscious business methods such as opening a day care center in 1971, as well as a Senior Day Care center for parents of employees, banning smoking in 1986, and sponsoring 40 inner-city youth to attend Harvard University, Hiatt's alma mater. [3] In 1992, Hiatt stepped down as chairman to pursue philanthropy through the company's foundation, and he has become a staunch advocate for electoral reform. [6]

Collective Brands

In 2007, Payless ShoeSource of Topeka, Kansas acquired Stride Rite. On August 16, 2007, the company changed its name to Collective Brands, Inc. By 2009, it was announced that Stride Rite would operate under the further-revised name of Collective Brands Performance + Lifestyle Group. [7]

Wolverine World Wide

In May 1, 2012, Stride Rite, Keds, Sperry Top-Sider, and Saucony became part of Wolverine World Wide after a joint agreement with Blum Capital Partners and Golden Gate Capital acquired the Performance Lifestyle Group of Collective Brands for US$1.23 billion. [8]

Stride Rite stores

Stride Rite at the Natick Mall Stride Rite at the Natick Mall, Natick MA.jpg
Stride Rite at the Natick Mall

Stride Rite retail children's stores are located primarily in larger regional shopping centers, clustered generally in the major marketing areas of the U.S.. The number of retail stores, as of 2012, by type for the Stride Rite Retail segment is represented in the table below.

Stride Rite children's storesOutlet storesLeased children's shoe departmentsTotal Stride Rite retail stores
2311027 (at Macy's)340

See also

It sponsors Curious George on PBS Kids.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Save A Lot</span> American retail and grocery company

Save A Lot Food Stores Ltd. is an American discount supermarket chain store headquartered in St. Ann, Missouri, in Greater St. Louis. It has about 900 independently owned and operated stores across 32 states in the United States with over $4 billion in annual sales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sneakers</span> Sport and casual shoes

Sneakers (US) or trainers (UK), also known by a wide variety of other names, are shoes primarily designed for sports or other forms of physical exercise but which are also widely used for everyday casual wear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sara Lee Corporation</span> American defunct consumer good company

The Sara Lee Corporation was an American consumer-goods company based in Downers Grove, Illinois. On July 4, 2012, Sara Lee Corporation was split into two companies: one for North American operations renamed Hillshire Brands, the other for international beverage and bakery businesses named D.E Master Blenders 1753.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">McCrory Stores</span> American store chain

McCrory Stores or J.G. McCrory's was a chain of five and dime stores in the United States based in York, Pennsylvania. The stores typically sold shoes, clothing, housewares, fabrics, penny candy, toys, cosmetics, and often included a lunch counter or snack bar. They also exclusively sold Oriole Records, one of the most popular 'dime store labels' from 1921 to 1938.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rite Aid</span> American drugstore chain

Rite Aid Corporation is an American drugstore chain based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1962 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, by Alex Grass under the name Thrift D Discount Center. It is the third-largest drugstore chain in the United States, with over 2,000 stores, and ranked No. 148 in the Fortune 500 in 2022.

Saucony is an American brand of athletic footwear and apparel. Founded in 1898, the company is owned by Wolverine World Wide. Products commercialised by Saucony include footwear and clothing ranges, such as athletic shoes, jackets, hoodies, T-shirts, sweatpants, shorts, and socks. Accessories include hats and backpacks.

Wolverine World Wide, Inc. or Wolverine Worldwide, is a publicly traded American footwear manufacturer based in Rockford, Michigan. The shoemaker is known for its eponymous brand, Wolverine Boots and Shoes, as well as other brands, such as Hush Puppies, Chaco, and Merrell. The company also manufactures licensed footwear for other firms, such as Caterpillar and Harley-Davidson. In 2012, Wolverine World Wide added Saucony, Keds, Stride Rite and Sperry Top-Sider to its list of brands, after acquiring the Performance Lifestyle Group of Collective Brands in a $1.23 billion transaction that also involved the sale of Payless ShoeSource and Collective Licensing International to private equity firms Blum Capital Partners and Golden Gate Capital.

Payless ShoeSource Worldwide, LLC, is an American multinational discount footwear chain. Established in 1956 by cousins Louis and Shaol Pozez, Payless was a privately held company owned by Blum Capital, and Golden Gate Capital. In 1961, it became a public company as the Volume Shoe Corporation, which merged with The May Department Stores Company in 1979. In the 1980s, Payless was widely known in the U.S. for its Pro Wings line of discount sneakers, which often had Velcro straps instead of laces. In 1996, Payless became an independent publicly held company. In 2004, Payless announced it would exit the Parade chain and would close 100 Payless Shoe outlets. On August 17, 2007, the company acquired the Stride Rite Corporation and changed its name to Collective Brands, Inc. As of 2020, Payless is owned by a group of investors led by Alden Global Capital and Axar Capital Management.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keds</span> American casual shoe brand

Keds is an American brand known for its canvas shoes with rubber soles. Founded in 1916 by U.S. Rubber, its original shoe design was the first mass-marketed canvas-top sneaker. The brand was sold to Stride Rite in 1979, which was acquired by Wolverine World Wide in 2012. Since February 2023, Keds has been owned and operated by Designer Brands.

Sperry or Sperry Top-Sider is an American brand of boat shoe designed in 1935 by Paul A. Sperry. Sperrys, or Top-Siders, were the first boat shoes introduced into the boating and footwear markets. Until January 2024, the Sperry brand was owned by Wolverine World Wide and headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts. It is currently owned by Authentic Brands Group, with the North America operations licensed to Aldo group.

Designer Brands Inc. is an American company that sells designer and name brand shoes and fashion accessories. It owns the Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW) store chain, and operates over 500 stores in the United States and an e-commerce website.

Matthew E. Rubel is an American entrepreneur and investor. He is the former chairman, chief executive officer, and president of Collective Brands, Inc., the parent company for Payless ShoeSource, a footwear, accessory, and lifestyle brand company, Collective Brands' Performance + Lifestyles Group, and Collective Licensing International.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xtep</span> Chinese sports equipment company

Xtep International Holdings Limited is a Chinese sportswear company based in Xiamen, Fujian. Established in 2001, the company has been traded on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange since 2008.

Caleres Inc. is an American footwear company that owns and operates a variety of footwear brands. Its headquarters is located in Clayton, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis. Founded in 1878 as Bryan, Brown & Company in St. Louis, it underwent several name changes; for a time, the Hamilton-Brown Shoe Company was the largest manufacturer of shoes in America. It went bankrupt in June 1939.

Sears plc was a large British-based conglomerate. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It was acquired by Charles Clore in the 1950s who expanded the company to be one of the largest retailers in Britain. It was acquired by Philip Green in 1999 who oversaw the break up of the group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anthony DiPaolo</span> American businessman

Anthony DiPaolo is an American businessman and the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Work 'N Gear, a workwear and healthcare fashion retailer.

Arnold Hiatt is an American businessman who was the president of the Stride Rite footwear company. He was a large contributor to political campaigns for the Democratic Party as well as being a voice calling for money to get out of politics. He has called for serious electoral reform and public financing of elections. Hiatt was praised by Harvard Law School professor Lawrence Lessig for his stance on electoral reform.

Authentic Brands Group LLC (ABG) is an American brand management company headquartered in New York City. Its holdings include various apparel, athletics, and entertainment brands, which it partners with other companies to license and merchandise. ABG owns more than 50 consumer brands, as well as the likeness rights or estates of celebrities, including Muhammad Ali, Elvis Presley, and Marilyn Monroe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Accent Group</span> Australian multinational clothing retail company (1988)

Accent Group is an Australian and New Zealand footwear and clothing retail, wholesaling and distribution company. It has more than 800 retail stores, along with 19 brands, and more than 20 online platforms.

References

  1. "BRIEF-Wolverine Worldwide announces agreement to license Stride..." Reuters. May 31, 2017 via www.reuters.com.
  2. "Stride Rite Children's Shoes -". www.striderite.com. Archived from the original on November 16, 2010.
  3. 1 2 Strom, Stephanie (April 20, 1992). "Stride Rite Chairman To Resign". The New York Times. Retrieved December 13, 2011. Arnold Hiatt, the shoe salesman who pioneered no-smoking offices and child care at the work place, is stepping down as chairman of the Stride Rite Corporation to devote himself full time to the company's philanthropic foundation.
  4. "About Us". Toddler University. Archived from the original on June 26, 2009. Retrieved December 22, 2022.
  5. "Collective Brands 2007 Annual Report - Form 10-K - April 1, 2008" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved May 16, 2012.
  6. "Groups Launch Push for New Campaign Finance Bill". CBS News. July 8, 2010. Retrieved December 13, 2011. Among those financing the effort is Arnold Hiatt, the former CEO of Stride Rite Corp. and major Democratic Party contributor who earlier this year urged other big political donors to give only to candidates who committed to support the legislation.
  7. Edwards, Frances (September 26, 2009). "Fashion News: USA:Collective Brands creates new identity for Stride Rite".
  8. "Saucony, Keds and Sperry Acquired by Wolverine Worldwide". Inside Insight. May 1, 2012. Retrieved December 14, 2012.