Just over a year ago, Nike introduced its 2015 Global Growth strategy, publicly declaring a revenue target of $27 billion by the end of that fiscal year. During the presentation, CEO Mark Parker outlined plans for Swoosh divisions and umbrella brands ranging from Nike SB and Basketball to Hurley and Converse. It’s clear that those plans have in part changed, though, as Nike, Inc. today announces plans to divest in its wholly-owned affiliate brands, Cole Haan and Umbro. The former specializes in luxury shoes, bags and accessories, and whose recent LunarLon collaborations make this something of a surprise, while the latter is a soccer-centric brand whose scope can be expanded upon by Nike’s own football faction. Nike looks to have this finished by the end of FY13 (exactly one year from today); will we see even more upscale lifestyle designs from Nike Sportswear now that the nearly quarter-century relationship with Cole Haan is kaput?
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