VF Corporation buys Williamson-Dickie

Lifestyle branded apparel and footwear company VF Corporation has bought Williamson-Dickie, the family-owned, private global workwear company.

The deal creates a global leader in workwear with approximately $1.7 billion in annual revenue.

While the two companies have described the deal as a merger, VF will pay Williamson-Dickie shareholders approximately US$820 million in cash for the business, which owns the brands Dickies, Workrite, Kodiak, Terra and Walls. They will join VF’s current workwear portfolio, which includes Wrangler, Riggs Workwear, Timberland Pro, Red Kap, Bulwark and Horace Small.

Williamson-Dickie CEO Philip Williamson will remain with the company, headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.

On a trailing 12-month basis, Williamson-Dickie generated approximately $875 million of revenue last year.

“When we introduced our 2021 global business strategy earlier this year, reshaping our portfolio to accelerate growth was our highest priority,” said Steve Rendle, president and CEO of VF. “The acquisition of Williamson-Dickie is another meaningful step that delivers on that commitment and further demonstrates our focus on being an active portfolio manager to drive transformative growth for VF and value creation for our shareholders.”

Williamson said his company had built its portfolio of brands for nearly a century. “Today’s announcement is an authentic and natural next step as we look to combine the strengths of our two companies to create significant opportunities for our employees, vendors, retail partners and ultimately our customers. We expect that under VF’s leadership, we’ll be able to experience the next wave of growth and better meet the needs of workers everywhere.”

VF says revenue in the current year is now expected to reach $11.85 billion, up 3.5 per cent on a reported basis, including a $200 million contribution from Williamson-Dickie, excluding  transaction and other deal-related expenses.

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