Authentic Brands Group (Authentic), the brand management company, plans to ramp up its business in Japan, and last month announced plans to open a subsidiary here this year, according to local press reports.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jamie Salter, who recently visited Japan, said that the group currently garners around JPY80bn in sales from the Japanese market but wants to increase this fivefold in the next three to five years.
Authentic has several licenses and franchises in operation in Japan, including Forever 21, which is signed to Adastria via Itochu, and Under Armour, which is now under the control of Itochu following the latter’s takeover of Dome, Under Armour’s distributor.
Other brands already in Japan include Brooks Brothers, which has seen less than stellar performance in recent years under Daidoh management, and Barneys New York, the license for which has just been sold by Seven & I to Laox.
