MIAMI, Aug. 18, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Perry Ellis International (Nasdaq: PERY) announced today that it has entered into a license agreement with Tiendas por Departamento Ripley S.A. in Peru for men's, women's and children's skate and surf sportswear apparel under the Gotcha® brand. The sports fashion collection is currently available in Ripley's 27 stores in Peru with plans for expansion within and beyond the walls of stores in Peru, Chile and Colombia. 

Gotcha as a brand is deep-rooted in Surf. However, it is an all-encompassing lifestyle brand equally as important and trendsetting in the Snow and Skate worlds as it has been for 30 years in Surf. Influenced by the wild and rebellious personalities within the surfing community, Gotcha quickly established itself as a leader in the alternative and extreme lifestyle sector. Following a strict code of pure surfing, freestyling, fashion and fun, the brand has remained true to its following and continues to make a positive impact on surfing around the globe.

Perry Ellis International Chairman & Chief Executive Officer George Feldenkreis remarked, "Our Company is pleased to expand our relationship with Ripley and maximize the potential of the Gotcha brand apparel in Peru and extend it to Chile and Colombia. Ripley has been a terrific retail partner for Gotcha through the years. Engaging Ripley now as one of our licensees will enhance our global reach across product categories and geographies to drive further growth and profitability."

"We are genuinely excited to continue to bring the successful Gotcha label to our extreme sports customers and are looking forward to being a part of the Perry Ellis International licensing team," commented Tiendas por Departamento Ripley S.A.'s Country Manager, Norberto Rossi.

For more information about Perry Ellis International, Inc. and the company's entire portfolio of brands, please visit. www.PERY.com.

About Perry Ellis International

Perry Ellis International, Inc. is a leading designer, distributor and licensor of a broad line of high quality men's and women's apparel, accessories and fragrances. The Company's collection of dress and casual shirts, golf sportswear, sweaters, dress pants, casual pants and shorts, jeans wear, active wear, dresses and men's and women's swimwear is available through all major levels of retail distribution. The Company, through its wholly owned subsidiaries, owns a portfolio of nationally and internationally recognized brands, including: Perry Ellis®, Original Penguin® by Munsingwear®, Laundry by Shelli Segal®, Rafaella®, Cubavera®, Ben Hogan®, Savane®, Grand Slam®, John Henry®,  Manhattan®, Axist®, Jantzen® and Farah®.  The Company enhances its roster of brands by licensing trademarks from third parties, including: Nike® and Jag® for swimwear, and Callaway®, PGA TOUR®, and Jack Nicklaus® for golf apparel. Additional information on the Company is available at http://www.pery.com.

About Tiendas por Departamento Ripley S.A.

Ripley is one of the biggest companies in the retail industry with presence in Chile, Peru and Colombia. We operate department stores offering a wide range of consumer goods in different product categories such as apparel, furniture, accessories and electronics. We opened our first store in Peru in 1997 and currently have 27 stores.