United Legwear & Apparel Co: Who is Ted Baker’s new UK and European operator?

Authentic Brands Group’s announcement of an extension of its partnership with ULAC to manage ecommerce operations for British heritage brand Ted Baker in both the UK and Europe comes after Authentic struck a separate deal with ULAC to run Ted Baker in both the US and Canada earlier this month.

At the time, Jarrod Weber, Authentic’s global president of sports and lifestyle, said this was an “essential building block” for the revitalisation of the Ted Baker brand globally.

Speaking about the UK and European deal, Weber said in a statement to the City yesterday morning that ULAC has a “proven track record in translating global brands for the UK market” and called it “the ideal partner” for Ted Baker’s future online growth.

So with that in mind, Retail Week takes a look at ULAC, its existing brand portfolio, what experience it has in running pureplay retail brands and what this means for Ted Baker’s longer-term future.

Who is United Legwear & Apparel Co?

Founded in 1998, ULAC is a New-York based global manufacturer and distributor of apparel and accessories. 

Its existing brand portfolio includes a vast range of fashion and sportswear brands, including giants such as Puma, Scotch & Soda, Skechers, Champion and DKNY.

According to its website, ULAC prides itself in its retail relationships. It has a breadth of partners including department stores Bloomingdales, Macy’s and Nordstrom in the US, as well as Costco Wholesale, Urban Outfitters and online ecommerce giant Amazon.

Having taken on Ted Baker’s wholesale, concession shops and ecommerce operations in the US and Canada earlier this month, ULAC certainly has the knowledge and experience required for the job with the huge range of products covering womenswear, menswear and childrenswear at its disposal.

Retail analyst and consultant Maureen Hinton says ULAC has the expertise in designing, manufacturing, licensing and distribution that Ted Baker needs for its revival – in short, it can be expected to be a fairly hands-on partner.

She adds that ULAC has a range of experience with licensing and selling brands across Europe and the UK, which allows it a true understanding of the market.

Online recovery

With all Ted Baker stores across the UK and Europe now closed and rumoured rescue deals of its store estate by Frasers Group having collapsed, the light at the end of the tunnel is its online recovery.

Authentic branded the ULAC deal as a “significant milestone” for Ted Baker and said the partnership will “restore its digital destination for its loyal consumers”.

While ULAC has the experience to handle a turnaround of the Ted Baker brand online, how it approaches this remains to be seen. Analysts say this could prove particularly challenging in an increasingly competitive market as Ted Baker attempts to find its new niche.

Historically, the revival of collapsed brands online hasn’t always been a shining success with the likes of Topshop and Debenhams being two prime examples. 

Both were brands once regarded as pioneers in their field, yet both became irrelevant, struggled to compete with fast-fashion giants such as Primark, Boohoo and Asos, and neither were able to champion online retail while maintaining costly large store estates.

And despite the online strategies and relaunches, Topshop and Debenhams never returned to what they once were. 

GlobalData head of apparel research Chloe Collins thinks this loss of brand relevance and appeal could prove a challenge for Ted Baker’s future. “ULAC’s specialism in ecommerce means it is well placed to handle the operational side of Ted Baker’s website, but low brand appeal and desire among shoppers remains its main hurdle to generating strong online sales,” she says.

“Unless its ranges are made more relevant and fashionable, and can capture attention again, the website will struggle to achieve traffic. Once brand images have been tainted, they are very hard to turn around. 

“Any transformation will be harder to communicate to shoppers too due to the loss of stores as the brand has less visibility.”