Stride Rite has added another big license to its stable.
The brand, a division of Topeka, Kan.-based Collective Brands Inc., has signed a multi-year licensing agreement with Marvel Entertainment to create a collection of children’s shoes inspired by Marvel’s cast of iconic superhero characters, including Spider-Man, Iron Man and Captain America. The collection, available in toddler and youth sizes, will include athletic styles, sport shoes and casual sandals.
The first style, the Spider-Man Web-Slinger sneaker, will launch this holiday season in Stride Rite retail stores, as well as in department stores, independents and specialty footwear shops across the U.S. and Canada. Priced at $55, the sneaker features Stride Rite’s Super Slingshot technology, which the company said provides energy return to help kids run faster and jump higher. Additional styles will roll out throughout 2012. Retail prices will range from about $22 to $55 for other styles. To promote the Marvel footwear in its own stores, Stride Rite plans to develop an integrated cross-channel marketing campaign.
For Marvel, the partnership is an opportunity to broaden its licensed footwear offering and add new points of distribution, said Paul Glitter, president of consumer products for North America. “It enables us to further maximize exposure for our brand and enter into key distribution channels that are important to our overall licensing strategy,” he said. “We are excited to be expanding our footwear program and [working with] one of the most trusted brands in children’s footwear. Stride Rite has created a collection that perfectly reflects our beloved superheroes.”
