Authentic Brands Group Gains $500 Million Investment to Support Expansion

Authentic Brands Group has received a $500 million primary follow-on investment from growth equity firm General Atlantic.

The global brand owner, marketing and entertainment platform — which owns more than 40 brands, including Brooks Brothers, Nautica and Reebok — will use the new funding to support its worldwide expansion, Authentic Brands said in a Thursday (June 29) press release.

“General Atlantic’s increased investment in Authentic is a testament to the strength of our proprietary brand platform, business model and team,” Authentic founder, Chairman and CEO Jamie Salter said in the release. “General Atlantic takes an innovative investment approach and shares our vision for building brand value for the long term.”

Authentic connects brands with partners, operators, distributors and retailers. Its brands generate $25 billion in global annual retail sales and have a retail footprint in 150 countries, according to the release.

The company strengthened its position in the luxury market in April with its acquisition of Vince Holding, an understated luxury brand from California. The entities also entered into a licensing agreement that grants Authentic the right to operate the Vince business.

During the same month, Authentic made a binding offer to buy action sports and lifestyle brand Boardriders, a move that would add the board sports brands Quiksilver, Billabong, Roxy DC Shores, RVCA, Element, VonZipper and Honolua to its portfolio.

In other transactions this year and last, Authentic swapped a stake in its company for the outdoor sportswear seller Eddie Bauer, purchased British fashion retailer Ted Baker and bought a majority stake in brand management company DB Ventures, which was formed by former soccer player David Beckham.

The company and General Atlantic have been partners for six years, during which time Authentic has accelerated its growth through mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and expansion into key markets, Andrew Crawford, managing director and global head of consumer at General Atlantic, said in the release.

“Looking ahead, we believe Authentic is positioned for continued diversification across categories, license partners, geographies and distribution channels, with immense whitespace in digital and eCommerce particularly,” Crawford said in the release.

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