Lady LUX

Jones Group has acquired the majority of the Brian Atwood brand, further extending its relationship with the footwear designer, whose contemporary B Brian Atwood line is already a licensed partnership with the company. With the new joint venture, Jones plans to help transform the Brian Atwood brand into a lifestyle brand and expand it into new categories, which will range from jewelry to apparel.

Atwood, based in Milan, will continue to be the creative director of the brand and will oversee all aspects of design and image. The footwear designer praised Jones for its “business acumen and brand expertise,” which “will help me realize my dream of a fully developed Brian Atwood brand,” as reported by WWD.com.

As part of the acquistition, Atwood’s current and future collections, including his luxury footwear line, will be incorporated into the Jones portfolio.

“Our successful launch of B Brian Atwood has been a gradual building of a long-term partnership, and the collection demonstrated to us that there is strong demand for his vision, which our team can execute brilliantly against his ideas,” said Richard Dickson, Jones’ president and chief executive officer of branded business. “We believe he has global demand, and the two companies combined could be that much more powerful. We have studied the Brian Atwood designer piece of the business. It’s a well-run boutique brand that is probably, in terms of volume, small, but it is important and has the capability of growing.”

The acquisition of the luxury footwear brand expands Jones’ portfolio, as the company has been aiming to reinvent itself as brand-centric rather than category-centric.

The Brian Atwood brand has a celebrity following that includes Lady Gaga and Victoria Beckham and is available in upscale stores like Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Intermix and Jeffrey.

Tagged in: footwear, shoes, b brian atwood, brian atwood, lifestyle brand, acquisition, jones group inc,