E-Land buys Italy’s Coccinelle leather fashion brand

E-Land, a Korean retailer, said yesterday that it has clinched a deal to buy an Italian fashion brand in a bid to expand its presence in Asia’s fashion markets.

Under the deal with Italy’s Marialla Burani Fashion Group, E-Land will purchase its fashion brand Coccinelle, a maker of leather goods. The company declined to reveal its takeover prices.

E-Land said that the move will pave the way for it to expand its presence in emerging markets like China.

The deal came as Coccinelle’s parent group is suffering from business setbacks stemming from the impact of the euro zone debt crisis.

Coccinelle, which has around 1,300 stores in 28 nations, currently has seven outlets in major Korean department stores, according to E-Land.

E-Land purchased debt-ridden Mandarina Duck from the Italian fashion brand last July in an effort to tap into the European market.