Deckers Brands History

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The Company Description of Its Time

Deckers Brands, formerly Deckers Outdoor Corporation, is filed in its original Apparel Search profile with its portfolio stated up front: UGG, Teva, Sanuk, HOKA ONE ONE and Ahnu. The corporate facts as recorded are compact - stock DECK; corporate headquarters Deckers Outdoor Corporation, 495-A South Fairview Ave, Goleta, CA 93117, phone (805) 967-7611 - and the profile's own summary of the company is that it remains close to its origins in Goleta, where, as a University of California, Santa Barbara student, founder Doug Otto began producing sandals in 1973. From that start it has grown into a leading global company with locations on three continents - growth the original attributes, brand by brand, to acquisition, which is the story the sections below follow.

Teva, Simple and the UGG Acquisition

Acquisition became the growth strategy early. In 1985 the company entered into a licensing agreement to produce and distribute Teva sandals, and experienced tremendous growth. Teva, the original sport sandal, was initially designed for river rafting in 1984 by Grand Canyon river guide Mark Thatcher, known at first primarily as a water sports sandal with a unique patented strapping system; the brand was named Company of the Year by Footwear News in 1992, and since 1994 the line has evolved to include leather casual shoes and boots, performance footwear and cold weather styles for men, women and children. In November 2002 Deckers acquired the worldwide Teva patents, trademarks and other assets from Mark Thatcher, giving Deckers complete ownership of the brand.

In 1993 Deckers acquired Simple Shoes, created in 1991 by Eric Meyer as a link between athletic and outdoor shoes and known for its low environmental impact and use of recycled materials. The same year, the new brand collective needed an umbrella name, so the Deckers Brand morphed into Deckers Outdoor Corp, going public on the NASDAQ in 1993. Two years later, in 1995, Deckers acquired UGG Holdings. UGG Australia - brought to the United States in 1978 by Australian Brian Smith, from the sheepskin boots worn by surfers - had sales of $17 million at acquisition; in the fifteen years since, in the historical record, it opened 25 company-owned stores worldwide and by 2010 its sales exceeded $800 million, recognised as one of the biggest success stories in the footwear industry in recent decades. By 1994 the original Deckers brand was retired so the company could focus on UGG, Teva and Simple.

Tsubo, Ahnu, MOZO and Sanuk

The later acquisitions are dated in sequence: in 2008 the pioneering athleisure brand Tsubo joined the Deckers family, followed in 2009 by the young outdoor performance lifestyle brand Ahnu. In 2010 Deckers completed the acquisition of MOZO, a duty shoe brand that launched a new line of shoes designed by chefs Marcus Samuelsson, Chris Cosentino and Aaron Sanchez. In July 2011 Deckers finalised the acquisition of Sanuk, a dynamic action sport and adventure footwear brand known for its original sandals and irreverent marketing; Sanuk, which means 'fun' in Thai, was founded in 1997 by entrepreneur Jeff Kelley, whose first product was a sandal made of green indoor-outdoor carpet, and by 2011 it was available in more than 1,700 retailers in 40 countries.

The philosophy the original attaches to that sequence is worth keeping whole: using acquisition as a keystone of its growth strategy, Deckers continued to identify emerging brands that would complement its existing performance and lifestyle brands, each designed to appeal to a variety of consumers across activities from high-performance to casual wear, with products emphasising function, fashion, comfort and technical performance. The preserved routes lead to the separate UGG Australia filing in the U letter, to Deckers financials, jobs and news in the Apparel Search directories, and to the footwear companies list. For the current portfolio - which has changed since this filing's brand list was written - the official Deckers site in the References is the authority.

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