Accent Group has confirmed the details of its strategic transaction with Frasers Group, which includes a notable store rollout of Frasers’ retail subsidiary Sports Direct across Australia and New Zealand.
Frasers has also agreed to increase its shareholding in Accent to 19.57 per cent, up from its original 14.65 per cent stake that the UK group bought off from Australian businessman Brett Blundy.
The updated stake, valued at around $60.4 million, will be used to fund the initial roll-out of the Sports Direct business in ANZ, with an initial 50 set to open over the next six years. Accent has been granted the right to manage Sports Direct locality for an initial 25-year term.
Accent Group CEO Daniel Agostinelli said there is an opportunity to open up to 100 or more Sports Direct stores over time.
The deal also includes a new employment contract with Agostinelli, who has committed to remaining as CEO for at least another three years.
“The roll-out has key brand support and will leverage the proven operating model, combined capability and global brand relationships enabled by the Frasers and Accent alliance,” Agostinelli said.
Also within the deal, Accent will have access to Frasers’ owned brand portfolio to sell both within Sports Direct and other Accent stores. These brands include Everlast, Lonsdale, Slazenger, Karrimor, USA Pro and Hot Tuna.
Frasers’ Sports Direct business has long term and significant trading relationships with the world’s best sports brands including Nike, Adidas, Asics, New Balance and others.
“The long-term relationship with Frasers represents a strategically important alliance with a large global retailer and the material new growth opportunity for Accent that we have been looking for,” Accent chairman David Gordon said. “Frasers’ subscription for a further 5 per cent shareholding will provide the initial funding to build the new Sports Direct business.
"The increase in Frasers’ total shareholding in Accent to 19.57 per cent also reflects Frasers’ confidence in Accent’s management strength and new business capability.”
Frasers Group CEO Michael Murray said the group has developed a "robust partnership" with Accent since acquiring the shareholding last year from Blundy. This includes adding former Sports Direct CEO Dave Forsey to the Accent board.
“Accent has an impressive, well-established platform with various sneaker concepts and a strong distribution of brands,” Murray said. “We’re looking forward to partnering with Accent to launch Sports Direct in Australia and New Zealand, working towards our bold plan of opening 100 plus stores.
“This reaffirms our commitment to drive growth of the Sports Direct brand internationally and marks a significant step forward in our ambition to becoming the leading global sporting goods retailer.”
Frasers operates more than 1,500 stores across over 30 countries. In FY24, Frasers reported revenue of £5.5 billion (~A$11.5 billion), with its UK Sports segment generating £2.9 billion in revenue across over 800 stores.
Accent is a large ANZ retailer and distributor of premium lifestyle and sports footwear with over 900 stores and 12 distributed brands.