Asics reportedly axing partnerships with UK indies

Japanese footwear giant Asics is understood to be terminating its wholesale contracts with independent retailers in the UK as it looks to focus on big chains and direct online sales.

According to a number of independents, Asics issued a notification to announce it would no longer be supplying them with products, causing a wide upset among those affected.

This was highlighted by the Guardian, which cited Dipu Patel, the owner of London’s Euro Sport, as one of the retailers impacted by the move.

Patel, who said the brand contributes to 40 percent of his footwear sales, told the media outlet: “It’s a shock to the system. We will be losing [Asics] customers – they will buy it online.

“[Asics] have used us as a stepping stone to be where they are and then are going to sell direct.”

A letter from Asics seen by the Guardian also stated that it was halting supplies to such stores from next year after “reassessing the relationship with many of our customers”.

It must be noted that Asics was reported to have cut off some larger independent retailers last month, while smaller ones had been left in place.

The decision follows a similar strategy by Asics’ competitors Nike and Adidas, which were understood to have begun dropping smaller retailers back in 2019 to leverage their market power.