Asics Spinning Off Onitsuka Tiger Into Independent Company on January 1, 2027

The Split

Asics announced on June 10, according to Jiji Press, that Onitsuka Tiger will be absorbed into OT Group Corporation — a wholly owned Asics subsidiary — on January 1, 2027. The decision formalizes what has been an increasingly obvious brand divergence: Asics makes performance sports gear; Onitsuka Tiger makes fashion statements.

Asics Chairman and CEO Yasuhito Hirota put it plainly at a Tokyo press conference: "We will make it independent and let it walk its own path more freely."

Why Now

Onitsuka Tiger's numbers made the decision easy. According to Business Times, the brand reported nearly a 60 percent surge in profit last year, carries margins of approximately 38 percent, and ranks second only to Asics' performance running segment in profitability. That gave management a strong business case for giving it room to move.

Three forces are pushing the growth: a global resurgence in retro sneaker aesthetics, a tourism boom to Japan, and a weaker yen making Japanese goods cheaper for foreign buyers. The brand already operates about 190 stores across roughly 160 countries, including Japan, China, and Europe, according to Jiji Press.

Its medium-to-long-term target is annual sales of 200 billion yen, up roughly 50 percent from current levels.

The Identity Problem

Both Asics and Onitsuka Tiger share the same iconic stripe motif, and that is a problem CEO Ryoji Shoda wants solved. "For the past decade or so, we have believed that we needed to become a brand that can sell, even without the stripes," Shoda told Business Times. "Otherwise, it starts to feel like we are selling because of our affinity with Asics."

The brand's origin story is long. Onitsuka Shokai was founded in 1949 as a sports footwear company. When it merged with two other firms in 1977 and became Asics, the Onitsuka Tiger name went dormant. It was revived in 2002, and a pair of yellow-and-black Onitsuka Tigers worn by Uma Thurman in Kill Bill turned the relaunched brand into a cult object.

Now the brand wants to leave its athletic roots behind entirely and compete in the luxury lifestyle category. Shoda said the luxury repositioning will NOT necessarily come with an automatic price hike, though Onitsuka Tiger sneakers are already positioned above typical athletic footwear.

The U.S. Gamble

Onitsuka Tiger closed all its U.S. physical stores in 2023, citing strategic disagreements between the brand and Asics. Under OT Group's independence, it plans to re-enter the American market with a single flagship location in Los Angeles, set to open in February 2027.

Shoda is betting on depth over breadth. "In America, the business of opening many stores and taking sales through store expansion is becoming somewhat out of trend," he said, according to Business Times. "Rather than that, I think it is more important to have one very large store that clearly communicates the brand's direction."

For the first year, the LA store will be the brand's only U.S. physical retail presence. Any further expansion depends on how that store performs.

The Legitimate Counterargument

There is a reasonable case for skepticism here. Luxury repositioning is one of the most crowded and difficult brand transitions in retail. The sneaker market is littered with labels that tried to move upmarket and discovered their customer base came for the value, not the prestige. Onitsuka Tiger's existing recognition is largely tied to its Asics heritage and that shared stripe motif — exactly the identity Shoda says he wants to move away from. Abandoning what built your audience while chasing a luxury customer who may already have Balenciaga, New Balance 990s, or Loro Piana loafers carries real strategic risk.

However, the brand's 38 percent margins and 60 percent profit growth suggest the current customer base is already paying premium prices. That gives Shoda at least some foundation for the pivot.

Governance and Structure

According to Retail Asia, OT Group will serve as the global headquarters for all Onitsuka Tiger operations once the split takes effect. Regional subsidiaries covering sales, manufacturing, and local markets will be consolidated under OT Group's management. Asics says the restructuring is designed to speed up decision-making, sharpen governance, and improve financial transparency for the Onitsuka Tiger business within the broader Asics Group.

What Comes Next

The cleanest test of this entire strategy lands in February 2027: does a single large-format flagship in Los Angeles generate enough demand to justify further U.S. expansion? If foot traffic and sales meet Shoda's expectations, Onitsuka Tiger will have answered the hardest question in luxury brand-building — whether American consumers will pay a premium for a Japanese fashion label they previously associated with athletic shoes. If the LA store underperforms, the brand faces a re-entry problem with no obvious fallback position in its largest potential Western market.