New York, United States
Fila Luxembourg announced that it entered into a long term master license agreement for Latin America with DASS Group S.A. of Brazil. The territory covered by the license agreement includes the entire Latin American region, including Central and South America and the Caribbean. Fila Luxembourg's existing third party license agreements in the region were assigned to DASS Group in connection with the licensing arrangement. In addition, DASS Group acquired Fila Argentina and assumed responsibility for Fila's operations in Argentina.
Yoon-Soo (Gene) Yoon, Chairman and CEO of Fila Luxembourg's parent company GLBH Holdings S.a.r.l., stated, "DASS Group has been extremely successful over the last several years in developing the Fila brand in the Brazilian market and we look forward to their continued success with the entire Latin America Region."
Vilson Hermes, chairman, Dacilo Dilly and Armin Knab, executive members of the advisory board of the DASS Group, stated, "2007 has already been an exciting year for the DASS Group. With the execution of the Master License, DASS Group has captured the attention of the industry as a result of it strong future presence in the Latin American marketplaces. We welcome all Fila licensees in the region and staff members of the Fila Argentina subsidiary into the family, adding a powerful new dimension to our Group. Integration of our operations is our highest day-to-day priority. It is our firm belief that Fila's international concept of a new corporate brand identity will serve to enhance our future success."
Fila and DASS Group's vision is to reinvigorate the Fila(R) brand by collaborating on a global core marketing and communication network, by positioning Fila within the DASS Group portfolio to appeal to consumers who define sport outside traditional convention, prioritizing comfort and fit and by celebrating individuality in sport and life.
Established in Italy in 1911, Fila is a leading manufacturer of footwear and apparel for sport and leisure that has developed excellent brand recognition by marketing products with a high design and style content that are endorsed by professional athletes from around the world.
DASS Holding is the consolidation of the merger between Dilly and Classico in 2003 to integrate the brand management expertise of Classico with Dilly's experience in the manufacture of footwear. The DASS Group unites 13.000 customers which in 2006 marketed more than 10 million units of sporting goods, achieving sales of USD 246m). The company runs 10 production facilities distributed all over Brazil employing a workforce of over 9000 people. DASS derives from the two names "Dilly" and "Classico" and has been chosen to both preserve the history of the two companies and capture the essence of the new corporate positioning.
Source: Business Wire (Business Wire India)