Brown Shoe Acquires Sam & Libby

The Jones Group Inc. has sold the Sam & Libby brand to Brown Shoe Co. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.The acquisition by Brown Shoe has reunited the brand with its founders, Sam and Libby Edelman.Brown Shoe acquired Edelman Shoe two years ago. Last month, Libby Edelman returned to the Brown Shoe fold. Sam Edelman, founder of Edelman Shoe, is already at Brown Shoe as division president for the Sam Edelman Division. “We now have the opportunity to see our vision realized as true lifestyle designers. It was very important to us to have Sam & Libby back in our stable of brands,” he said.“This is an amazing opportunity for us to jump in and to use everything we have learned to reenergize the Sam & Libby brand,” said Libby Edelman.Diane Sullivan, president and chief executive officer of Brown Shoe, noted, “The timing is perfect to bring the Sam & Libby brand back into the fold. The potential for the entire portfolio is exciting and certainly presents additional interesting opportunities for us to explore.”The brand was launched in 1987. Jones owned the brand for eight years.