The Miwok 44, one of Gregory's technical rucksacks
The new owners of the Gregory, best known for its rucksacks, said they will continue to operate the outdoors brand separately and with the same sales structure in Europe.
Gregory was acquired in July for $85m (£53m) by Samsonite, the up-market luggage company.
It was previously owned by Black Diamond, the Utah-based outdoors specialists.
Samsonite moved to assure retailers and others in the trade that its contacts will remain the outdoors experts they are used to dealing with.
Fabio Rugarli, president of Samsonite Europe, said: “Gregory will stick to that strategy of high quality, comfort and fit under the Samsonite umbrella.
“Gregory will stay an independent brand and will continue to focus on technical backpacks of highest quality within its core business, the outdoor industry.”
Andrea Meerholz, who will continue as brand director for Europe under the Samsonite umbrella, said: “We want to assure the trade that Gregory will stay part of the European outdoor industry and their contacts continue to be those outdoor experts they are familiar with.
“Samsonite has a very strong administration and logistic platforms, as well as huge warehouse facilities in Belgium; this will add to our performance on shipments.”
Mr Rugarli said: “We want Gregory to become one of the ‘big players’ in the European outdoor backpack market.
“We are very happy to enter the outdoor business on such a high level with Gregory and to benefit from the existing know-how of the team. At the same time we are eager to support Gregory in the best possible way with Samsonite resources and competences.”
Almost three-quarters of Gregory’s 2013 revenue came from technical backpacks and accessories, with ‘lifestyle’ models accounting for the rest of its $34.9m (£21.7m) revenue, up from $30.6m (£19m) the previous year.
Announcing the sale in July, Peter Metcalf, president and chief executive of Black Diamond, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our employees and partners for their hard work and support in helping to build Gregory into a global leader in the outdoor segment.
“We are proud of the strong reputation that Gregory has established and maintained over the nearly 40 years of its history, and are excited by its bright future under Samsonite’s ownership.”
