Canterbury, one of New Zealand's oldest and most famous brands, has once again changed hands.
JD Sports has sold Canterbury in a symbolic one pound deal just three years after the British retail chain rescued the firm from certain collapse, according to a report in Britain's Daily Mail Online.
Canterbury, which supplies sportswear to the England and South African rugby teams, will be transferred to Britain's Pentland Group - JD's largest shareholder, the website reported.
If a majority of JD Sports' shareholders approve the deal, Pentland will also receive the firm's £22.7 million ($44.3 million) debt load.
JD Sports chose to sell the loss-making unit to focus more on the brands that return the bulk of its cash in the UK, including Blacks and Bank.
The UK company bought Canterbury in 2009 for 6.5m after the Canterbury's European arm was placed in administration, the website said.
Canterbury makes most of its money from sales in Australia and New Zealand, which meant that JD Sports was forced to spread itself increasingly thinly to sustain the business. The firm had hoped to make Canterbury into a global fashion brand but struggled to shake-off its longstanding association with sportswear.
Pentland is a privately owned, UK-based global brand management company involved in the sports, outdoor and fashion markets.
Canterbury has had a chequered history in recent years.
The company lost money after it was bought by American-based New Zealander David Teece and his partners, in 1999.
Canterbury was at one point majority owned by Bahrain-based private equity fund owned by a Kuwaiti bank.
