FOOTWEAR BRAND SKECHERS TO GO PRIVATE – Investment firm 3G capital has offered $63 per skechers share in cash
Skechers has agreed to be taken private by 3G Capital for $9.42 billion in the footwear industry’s biggest buyout to date, exiting public markets after 26 years as the popular shoe brand grapples with the impact of steep U.S. tariffs.
Investment firm 3G Capital has offered $63 per Skechers share in cash, the footwear brand said. That represents a 28% premium to the stock’s Friday close, according to Reuters calculations.
Skechers shares jumped 25% to $61.86 on the news, regaining some ground after dropping nearly 30% this year as the company withdrew its annual results forecast in April and warned of the fallout from President Donald Trump’s 145% import tariff on Chinese goods.
Needham analyst Tom Nikic said the deal talks may have been accelerated by the volatile macro environment – driven by tariffs, weakening consumer sentiment and troubled China-U.S. relations – and the company may have wished to navigate these challenges without being under Wall Street’s scrutiny. Needham’s Nikic also said the deal was “very surprising” as Skechers has always been viewed as a “family business,” with the founding Greenberg family highly involved in the operations.
Skechers, Nike and Adidas America are among the companies that have urged Trump to exempt shoes from reciprocal tariffs, as American businesses face higher costs and shoppers tighten spending to brace for a potential rise in prices.
CEO and founder Robert Greenberg, aged 85, will continue to lead the firm, while president Michael Greenberg and operating chief David Weinberg would also retain their roles.
The Skechers deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2025 and will be financed through a combination of cash provided by 3G Capital as well as debt financing that has been committed by JPMorgan Chase Bank.
