Line 7 has new owner

Photo / Brett Phibbs

Australian-owned textile manufacturing firm Charles Parsons has confirmed it is the new owner of Kiwi outdoor-wear brand Line 7.

Receivers were appointed to Line 7 in July after foreign exchange problems and the recession caused the sportswear, outdoorwear and casual clothing maker to run aground.

Since then receivers KordaMentha have been seeking a buyer for the brand, which had long been associated with top sailing events such as the America's Cup and the Round the World race.

There was a lot of interest, with KordaMentha receiving more than 50 serious inquiries.

Late last week Charles Parsons New Zealand chief executive Peter Allard denied the company was about to buy Line 7 but said it was one of four or five serious contenders for the label.

Yesterday Charles Parsons said it had bought the assets of Line 7, including the brand, intellectual property and all registered trademarks worldwide.

It would continue the proud tradition of Line 7 by ensuring continuity of supply to the existing agriculture and marine customers, the company said.

The acquisition would showcase its capabilities in the field of technical fabrics.

Allard said there were "tremendous synergies" between the two companies as Charles Parsons had been a supplier to Line 7. Charles Parsons is a family-owned textile maker with 700 staff in 20 locations in Australia, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Fiji.

It manufactures fashion fabrics and garments, sells linen, drapery and upholstery brands including Trelise Cooper Interiors, and has a technical division making performance industrial and outdoor textiles.

Line 7 first began in 1963 making wet-weather gear for sailors.

Former owner Ross Munro bought it out of receivership 19 years ago and expanded into casual wear with 11 retail outlets.

The receivers said in their first report last month that the company owed almost $5 million to unsecured creditors who were unlikely to be paid.