Footwear major Bata has set to start retailing and distributing CAT footwear soon in India. CAT, a lifestyle brand with a heavy equipment heritage, was earlier being sold and distributed here by Tata International after it formed a JV with Wolverine Worldwide of the US. Wolverine Worldwide, a $800 million company, owns around 16 footwear brands including Hush Puppies, Merrell and Harley-Davidson. It is also the licensee partner of the $55-billion Caterpillar, US manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, which markets CAT footwear and apparel globally. CAT will now be handled by Bata in India, which already manages the Hush Puppies brand here. And further plan is that the joint move has to open CAT branded stores in north India and increase the visibility of the brand. Such strategic move of the company will bring in a fresh business for the signage companies dealing in in-shop designs, displays and related tasks.
