What Foot Locker's Investment In Female Luxury Retailer Carbon38 Means

Foot Locker Inc. FL made a big step to boost the women’s athleticwear market after investing $15 million in Carbon38, Series A funding round.

A luxury lifestyle activewear brand created for the modern American women, Carbon38 is Foot Locker's foray into addressing one of the most pressing issues in the athletic apparel industry -- underserving the female consumer.

'Time Of Change'

For decades, the athletic industry approach to female oriented products has been to “pink and shrink it” but those days appear long over. The female consumer is the biggest growth opportunity in the industry, according to NDP Group's Matt Powell.

"It's a time of change in the business. Foot Locker is stepping up to address the undersourced women's segment of the industry," Powell told Benzinga. "I think both brands will benefit from the knowledge they are going to share."

As part of the partnership, Foot Locker CFO Lauren Peters will join Carbon38's Board of Directors.

"Katie and the team at Carbon38 have done an amazing job creating a brand with an extremely loyal following in the fitness and fashion worlds," Peters said in a statement. "In addition to the support of Carbon38's exceptional growth potential that our investment provides, we expect to leverage the team's keen industry insights and focus in order to elevate our own SIX:02 banner's performance."

Carbon38

Carbon38 has raised $26 million since 2013. The stores offer a curated blend of designers and exclusive Carbon38 branded label products.

"We are excited to have Foot Locker as an investor as we continue to scale our business and expand our omni-channel strategy, both in the U.S. and internationally," said Katie Warner Johnson, Carbon38 co-founder and CEO. "This funding enables us to accelerate our path of rapid growth and achieve our mission of defining a new category of luxury active ready-to-wear for women."

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Image credit: carbon38, Instagram