Collective Brands' Stride Rite Children's Group and Li & Fung Retailing Announce Plans to Bring the Iconic Children's Brand to Greater China and Southeast Asia

TOPEKA, Kan. and HONG KONG, Nov. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- The Collective Brands Stride Rite Children's Group (SRCG) and privately held Li & Fung Retailing announced today a licensing and development agreement aimed at introducing Stride Rite, the premium footwear brand for children, to Greater China and Southeast Asia.  (Note for Editors: This announcement is NOT related to publicly listed Li & Fung Ltd SEHK 494)

Under the agreement, a newly formed subsidiary of Li & Fung Retailing, LiFung Children Holdings Ltd, will market the Stride Rite brand and its range of children's footwear through stand-alone retail stores, shop-in-shops and ecommerce sales in Hong Kong, Mainland China, Taiwan, Macau, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. This is a first for Collective Brands to bring any of its retail concepts or brands to the mainland China market.  

"We are excited to partner with LiFung Children Holdings to bring the Stride Rite brand and its rich heritage position and commitment to children's growing feet to Asia," said Sharon John, President of SRCG.  "We look forward to bringing shoppers across the region our range of products that deliver the 'rite' technology for children combining style and quality, as well as a store format dedicated to properly fitting the child and servicing parents and grandparents."

Trusted by moms since 1919, Stride Rite is the iconic children's shoe brand in the United States that has also been expanding internationally across Europe.  Stride Rite is focused on enriching the journey of childhood one step at a time ensuring the proper development of children's feet.  The brand has an unwavering commitment to innovation, technology, quality, health and style.

"We are thrilled to bring this iconic brand to Asia," said Pieter Schats, a senior executive of Li & Fung Retailing. "With its 90-year leadership position and passion for excellence in design, innovation, research and technology, Stride Rite is a natural addition to our portfolio of retail offerings in the region."

Initial plans for the region include opening retail outlets in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia in December 2010 closely followed by stores in China in 2011. All stores will feature the proprietary STEP™ -- Scientifically Tested Everyday Proven™ -- program, which is rooted in a recent SRCG-commissioned third-party study "The Effects of Footwear on Children Learning to Walk."  The STEP program ensures quality, healthy footwear for every key developmental stage and is designed to help parents select the proper shoes to support every stage of a child's growth and development.

About Li & Fung Retailing

Li & Fung Retailing, a member of the Li & Fung Group, was formed in 1985 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the privately held Li & Fung (1937) Limited. All the retailing businesses under Li & Fung Retailing are not related to the publicly listed Li & Fung Limited SEHK494.

Under Li & Fung Retailing, there are two listed entities: Convenience Retail Asia Limited, operator of the Circle K Convenience Stores and the Saint Honore Cake Shops in the Pearl River Delta; Trinity Limited, a leading high-end luxury menswear retailer primarily serving Greater China. There is also  a privately held toys and children product specialty chain store Toys"R"Us in Greater China and South East Asia.

Li & Fung Retailing's businesses extend from Greater China to Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and other South East Asia countries through a combined network of close to 1,000 stores.

About The Stride Rite Children's Group and Collective Brands, Inc.

Stride Rite Children's Group, part of the Collective Brands Performance + Lifestyle Group, markets a leading brand of premium children's footwear in the United States under such brands as Stride Rite®, Saucony® Kids, Sperry Top-Sider® Kids, Keds® Kids and Robeez®, among others. For 90 years, the company's passion for excellence in design has been focused on ensuring the proper development of children's feet with a commitment to innovation, research and technology.

Collective Brands, Inc. (NYSE: PSS) is a leader in bringing compelling lifestyle, fashion and performance brands for footwear and related accessories to consumers worldwide. The company operates three strategic units covering a powerful brand portfolio, as well as multiple price points and selling channels including retail, wholesale, ecommerce and licensing. Collective Brands, Inc. includes Payless ShoeSource, focused on democratizing fashion and design in footwear and accessories through its nearly 4,500-store retail chain, with its brands Airwalk®, Dexter®, Champion®, Zoe & Zac™, the first-ever affordable green footwear brand, and designer collections Lela Rose for Payless, Unforgettable Moments by Lela Rose, Christian Siriano for Payless and Isabel Toledo for Payless, among others; the Performance + Lifestyle Group, focused on lifestyle and performance branded footwear and high-quality children's footwear sold primarily through wholesaling, with its brands including Stride Rite®, Keds®, Sperry Top-Sider®, Robeez®, and Saucony®, among others; and Collective Licensing International, the brand development, management and global licensing unit, with such youth lifestyle brands as Airwalk®, Above The Rim®, Vision Street Wear®, STRIKEFORCE(TM), Clinch Gear(TM), Sims®, Lamar® and LTD®, World Snowboarding Championships(TM) and Hind®. Information about, and links for shopping on, each of the Collective Brand's units can be found at http://www.collectivebrands.com.

SOURCE Collective Brands, Inc.