Brooks
Running-only brand since 2001. Seattle. Made the Villanova (1974-75), the first EVA-midsole running shoe — the hinge of the running shoes essay.
Status: Watchlist
- Founded
- 1914
- Website
- brooksrunning.com
- HQ
- USA
- Manufacturing
- Vietnam,Taiwan,USA,El Salvador,Peru,Philippines,Indonesia
- Ownership type
- Conglomerate subsidiary
- Parent
- Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A)
- Acquired
- 2006 (via Russell/Fruit of the Loom); standalone Berkshire subsidiary 2012
- Status since
- 2026-07-28
Ownership
Founded 1914, Philadelphia. Ownership chain: Wolverine 1981 (bankruptcy auction), Rokke Group 1993, J.H. Whitney 1998, Russell Athletic 2004, Berkshire Hathaway 2006 when Fruit of the Loom bought Russell; standalone direct Berkshire operating subsidiary from 2012. CEO Dan Sheridan since April 2024 (Jim Weber, 2001-2024).
Why Watchlist
Owns nothing and does not pretend to: names its Tier 1 suppliers with locations and discloses all four tiers, which no rival does. Berkshire ownership removes quarterly-exit pressure. Watchlist rather than Approved because transparency is not commitment — no factory ownership, no disclosed long-term purchase commitments, no repair path. If you wear Brooks and treat them as replaceable, the company's own disclosure agrees with you.
Reversibility
What would change our verdict
Disclosure regression (pulling the supplier list) forces an Avoid review. Long-term supplier commitments or manufacturing ownership forces an Approved review.
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