New owner in prospect for Czech Republic’s ‘sole survivor’, Prestige
Tomorrow marks the closing date for bids for the Czech Republic’s renowned ‘Prestige’ brand of ‘no-frills’ sneaker.
Together with its associated factory in the town of Zlin plus two other shoemaking plants, the brand is being sold by the bankrupt shoemaker CEBO, which was itself created from the ashes of the folded footwear company, Svit. CEBO was declared bankrupt in April 2002 following the loss of a crucial order from the US footwear giant,Timberland.
Demand for the distinctive blue and white Prestige sneaker is still strong 23 years after the design made its market debut. In that time it has survived the collapse of the communist-era captive market and the arrival of the likes of Nike, Reebok and adidas in the home market. Even the activities of counterfeit producers in the Far East failed to put a serious dent in sales, with around 200,000 pairs of the genuine article being produced last year.
Czechs currently buy around 30 million pairs of shoes a year, 60% of which are imported from China. The remaining imports mostly come from Italy, Slovakia, Spain and Germany.
