Castro Secures License for Chinese Sports Brand ANTA, Negotiates Partnership with Renoir

Castro has obtained the license to represent the Chinese sports brand ANTA in Israel and plans to open retail stores and wholesale operations for the brand. The company is currently negotiating with fashion retailer Renoir to bring them into a joint venture established for this new activity, alongside businessman Israel Chen, owner of ING, a sports brand importer. This move follows Renoir and Chen losing the license for the popular Swiss sports brand On due to a dispute, with the license now held by George Khoursh in partnership with Super-Pharm since January.

If negotiations succeed, Renoir and Chen will hold 49% of the new venture's shares, with Castro maintaining controlling interest. This partnership would enable Castro to rapidly expand ANTA by utilizing Renoir's existing retail points for On in major malls. ANTA is a major Chinese sports company listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, ranking as the world's third-largest sports brand after Nike and Adidas. It operates over 10,000 stores in China and 250 worldwide, owning other brands such as Puma, FILA, and Wilson.

Castro plans to invest 30 million shekels over the first two years to establish infrastructure and brand presence, distributing ANTA products through wholesale, online, and physical stores. The brand's Israeli launch is expected in 2027. ANTA will compete locally with leading sports brands Nike (licensed to Fox Group), Adidas (licensed to Electra Consumer Products), and others like On, HOKA, and Saucony. The competition between ANTA and On will be notable, especially as Renoir aims to re-enter the sports market after losing On, while Castro seeks to expand into a synergistic sector alongside fashion.