Nike plans to divest Cole Haan and Umbro brands

Nike Inc, the world's largest sportswear company plans to sell its Cole Haan and Umbro brands and focus on driving growth in name sake brand, Jordan, Converse and Hurley brands.

New York-based Cole Haan, which specialises in casual and dress, leather footwear and bags, was acquired by Nike in 1988, while Manchester, UK-based Umbro is a football specialist brand that was acquired by Nike in 2008.

Nike said it will begin the process of divesting of these two businesses immediately, and expects to complete the sale by the end its fiscal 2013. 

''Divesting of Umbro and Cole Haan will allow us to focus our resources on the highest-potential opportunities for Nike to continue to drive sustainable, profitable growth for our shareholders,'' said Mark Parker, president and CEO of the Beaverton, Oregon-based company.

''We see tremendous opportunity to accelerate profitable growth around the world by continuing to deliver innovation and inspire consumers through the Nike brand.''…… and ''we also see significant potential in Jordan, Converse and Hurley, which have unique consumer relationships that complement the Nike Brand,'' he added.

Despite the global slowdown, Nike has seen strong demand for its shoes and clothes, but like most consumer product companies, Nike faces rising costs on raw materials and packaging.

Its smaller rival, German sportswear company Adidas had last month said that it will reduce its product portfolio by one-quarter in order to cut costs and improve profitability.