Customers of cool clothing retailer West 49 won’t notice much of a change when the chain is taken over by Australian skate and snowboarding giant Billabong, the Canadian retailer’s chairman said Tuesday after shareholders overwhelmingly approved the $99-million deal.
“There’s so much vertical integration now with manufacturers getting into owning retail stores, so it was a natural mix, and we decided it was time to make a move,” Ken Fowler told a special shareholder meeting.
“We’ve given it one heck of a ride, 15 years and now, I think Billabong can add a major dimension… It’s become an industry of big players now, it was a tiny industry when we got into it.”
Most of the company’s 138 Canadian stores will likely remain under the West 49 banner, said Fowler, who was instrumental in negotiating the deal with the Australian skate and surf clothing retailer.
Billabong, which has a global presence, caters to youth and young adults with a variety of skate, surf- and snowboarding shorts, tops and accessories.
“They will build more Billabong stores, but I think West 49 will stay as a major brand,” Fowler said.
A tally of votes cast at the meeting showed 99.9% of shareholders were in favour of the $1.30 per share offer from Aurora Inc., a subsidiary of Billabong International. Billabong plans to take the company private and delist it from the Toronto Stock Exchange.
Billabong has forged a working relationship with West 49 executives over the years, with the Canadian retailer operating six licensed stores under the Billabong name, while many of its other locations sold branded products.
Fowler said he is thrilled that a company with a similar corporate culture will take the reins, while allowing West 49 president and CEO Sam Baio to continue to lead the business.
“They share some of the same culture that Sam does,” he said of the West 49 chief executive.
“That’s the way these guys are too, they come out of the industry as young-people minded.”
The Canadian retailer operates stores in nine provinces under various banners, including West 49 Billabong and Off The Wall.
