Mountfords Shoes sold

Mountford shoesThe Munro Family Group has acquired Victoria-based footwear chain, Mountfords Shoes, just months after purchasing the Wanted Shoes chain.

The Melbourne-based Munro Family Group design, manufacture, and own footwear brands including Gamins, Midas, Mollini, I Love Billy, Django & Juliette, and Cinori Shoes, and in 2013 acquired Australia’s largest online footwear retailer, Styletread.

The family-owned and operated, Mountfords Shoes has an estimated annual turnover of $20 million and operates 11 retail stores in Victoria. Its history dates back to 1912, when the company began as Sprague Footwear.

Mountfords Shoes MD, Laurie Crockett, has retired following the acquisition, after 40 years with the company, however, GM, John Parrella who has been with Mountfords Shoes for 30 years, will remain. The Munro Family Group now plans to expand the premium footwear brand.

Mountfords are very highly regarded in the industry and come with a strong history behind them. We are looking to build on this and develop the brand by expanding it nationally pretty quickly,” Bill Munro, said.

“When making the decision to acquire a new company we consider factors such as turnover, profitability, how much of the product fits into our existing portfolio, and how much further we can take it. We also look at the potential for the product to fit into our existing companies to boost our offering across the board,” Munro said.

Read more about Mountfords Shoes’ acquisition and our interview with Bill Munro in this week’s issue of Inside Retail PREMIUM

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