Veldhovengroup: Dept joins, Stills goes independent

"We let them go so that they can grow," says Martijn Veldhoven, CEO of parent company the Veldhovengroup. In the course of next year, women's fashion label Stills will separate from the Veldhovengroup and a new owner will be sought for children's

fashion brand NoNo. Dept is being added to the roster of brands - which also consists of Sandwich and Turnover - in order for the company to focus increasingly on women's fashion in the mid segment.

The Veldhovengroup is tight-lipped about whether the Dutch fashion label Dept was for sale or not. CEO Martijn Veldhoven does say the company has been looking for a new brand to strengthen its portfolio. Veldhoven calls Dept an 'on-fashion brand' which that appeals to a younger target audience. "Our current brands Turnover and Sandwich do not target the specific audience which Dept addresses. Therefore, it's a good addition."

According to Veldhoven, Dept will strengthen the position of the group in women's fashion's mid segment, which is precisely what the company wants. Veldhoven: "We have sixty years' experience positioning brands in the mid segment. That's where our expertise and strength lie." 2013 will be all about integrating Dept into the Veldhovengroup. The company expects that a large number of Dept employees will join its new owner.

Stills will carry on independently from July of next year onwards. According to Veldhoven, the brand deserves its own supply chain. Besides that, it appears little will change for the fashion label. The Veldhoven family will remain its owner and Martin Tramper will stay on as design manager. Its directly owned stores in Amsterdam and Antwerpen will continue to be a part of Stills as an independent entity.

The fashion firm is taking a year to find a new owner for children's fashion label NoNo. Until then it's business as usual. The Veldhovengroup wants to find an appropriate owner, one with 'expertise and capability within the children's fashion segment'. Exactly what will happen when the right candidate emerges is yet unknown.

Dept was founded by Tommy Netten. The first Dept store opened in Utrecht in the nineties. A complete collection was developed from 1996 and the brand also began its first foray into wholesale. In the meantime, the brand - which consists of Dept and Dept Denim Department - produces ten collections a year and is sold in over 1800 stores in eighteen countries.