TORONTO, July 20, 2017 /CNW/ – Today NELSON, Canada’s leading educational publisher, announced that it is entering the campus apparel business with the purchase of Westhall Apparel and Campus Hoods Athletics brands, including all associated intellectual property. The strategic acquisition represents NELSON’s further diversification and overall vision to rethink the role of publisher, acting as a leading agent of change within the education industry.
“This purchase, along with our recent collaborations with Microsoft and Disney Learning and the acquisitions of McGraw-Hill Ryerson’s K-12 business holdings and Edusight, are strong proof points of the new visionary direction of NELSON,” explains Steve Brown, NELSON President and CEO. “At NELSON we’re committed to aligning with the best in the business and are proud to be leading the charge towards a more consumer-centric vision of what it means to be a publisher and partner in the Canadian education industry for 2017 and beyond.”
The broadening of the NELSON portfolio into campus apparel offers new, more full-service solutions to consumer and student needs, while also helping to maintain a healthy industry. Providing quality product on a significant scale, from one distributor at an accessible price point, allows campus bookstores to thrive in the short and long term.
“After listening to campus retailers and bookstores across the country, and in an effort to maximize asset utilization to help reduce cost of educational resources, this initiative will enable text resource cost to be spread into other voluntary spend areas,” stated Brown. “Studies have shown that students utilizing educational resources have better learning outcomes than those who do not. As a result of our strategy to reduce cost in this critical area, higher success rates for students will follow.”
Before ceasing operations in 2014, Westhall Apparel was a staple in college and university bookstores across Canada. Known for its innovative decoration, logo applications and high quality techniques, Westhall Apparel consists of up-market pieces. While its sister brand, Campus Hoods Athletics, includes quality basics with a more value-focused price point.
NELSON will relaunch both brands with the equivalent commitment to quality, producing the collection from a new state-of-the-art embroidery facility housed in its Toronto, ON, head office. To lead production, the apparel brand’s founder Gabe Palumbo joins NELSON as Director of Westhall Apparel.
“Working with NELSON provides an intellectual infrastructure – based on industry expertise, a world-class vision and the bench strength of a 103 year old brand – that allows Westhall Apparel and Campus Hoods Athletics to come to life on an enriched scale,” said Gabe Palumbo, NELSON’s Westhall Apparel Director. “I am confident that NELSON will continue to cultivate and evolve these quality, student-focused brands.”
“The acquisition of Westhall Apparel is the first step in a broader strategy that will see NELSON expand further into campus services, producing a significant impact on the education industry at both the retail and the supply chain levels,” said Brown. “Ultimately, the real winner today and in the future, is the end-consumer, the Canadian post-secondary student.”
NELSON’s Westhall Apparel merchandise will be available in select college and university campus bookstores across Canada before the end of 2017.
About NELSON:
NELSON is Canada’s largest and leading educational publisher. NELSON believes in the evolution of life-long education and dedicates its business efforts to the creation of quality, innovative solutions that support the needs of every student, teacher and instructor to empower learning success. For more information about NELSON, please visit us at Nelson.com or find us on Facebook and Twitter.
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Stephanie Gomez
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