• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer @mahoney_sarah, Yesterday

Skechers is on the brink of a major coup: In a deal no one saw coming, the world’s third-largest footwear company plans to exit turbulent public markets with a $9.26 billion deal with 3G Capital, a Brazilian private equity firm.

If approved, the transaction will be the biggest buyout yet in the shoe business. The deal will also give the fast-growing Skechers more freedom than its two larger competitors, Nike and Adidas, including ways to navigate the escalating trade war, with pending tariffs on Asian-made apparel and footwear. 

Calling the announcement one of the biggest surprises this year, Krisztina Katai, an analyst who follows Skechers for Deutsche Bank, notes the deal is also “a potential indicator of things to come across the broader global brands sector,” as footwear and apparel retailers grapple with customers less willing to make discretionary purchases, and the still-unclear impact of tariffs.

That impact is significant for Skechers, which has become an international juggernaut. In addition to wide distribution in specialty and department stores, Skechers is a retail powerhouse, with more than 5,300 stores worldwide -- 600-plus in the U.S.

Skechers will continue to be based in Manhattan Beach, California, and led by the father-and-son team of Robert Greenberg, chairman and CEO, and Michael Greenberg, president. It's one of the largest founder-led consumer product companies, with $9 billion in annual sales.

Focused on comfort, style and affordability, the company routinely breaks its own sales records. Marketing has played a key role in that growth, including breakthrough Super Bowl ads and celebrity partnerships with personalities like athletes Joe Montana, Tony Romo, and such entertainers as Martha Stewart and Snoop Dogg.

And while the company is best known for comfy footwear, Skechers has also been pushing into performance shoes, competing with brands like Hoka, On, and New Balance. This week, Skechers debuted its Aero series, aimed at the elite running market.

3G is best known for investments in companies like Anheuser-Busch InBev and Restaurant Brands International, owner of Burger King, Tim Hortons, Firehouse Subs, and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen.

In an earnings call last week, Skechers posted sales of $2.41 billion, an increase of 7.1% over the year-ago period. But the company spooked investors by withdrawing an earlier forecast, citing macroeconomic uncertainty around the trade war, comparing the murkiness to the early and unpredictable days of the COVID pandemic.

Katai thinks the Skechers buyout may inspire similar mergers and acquisitions for other global brands, particularly if they are undervalued and have international growth potential. And given the Trump administration’s more deal-friendly regulatory environment, “we think the deal should receive all necessary approvals.”