Simon Property Group and Authentic Brands Group (ABG) have teamed up to acquire bankrupt denim maker Lucky Brand in bankruptcy proceedings for $140.1 million.
The Lucky Brand ownership group will work with landlords to maintain key stores across North America. There will also be an emphasis on driving distribution across e-commerce, marketplaces, department stores, specialty, and freestanding locations in North America and international territories including Latin America, Europe and Asia.
“We are pleased to welcome this iconic heritage denim brand to ABG,” says Jamie Salter, founder, chairman and chief executive officer, Authentic Brands Group. “This acquisition will boost the value of our portfolio to more than $13 billion in global retail sales annually. Lucky Brand’s DNA resonates strongly with today’s youth, and we see tremendous opportunity to unlock its value in key territories around the world. With ABG’s social media expertise and content development capabilities, we are ready to hit the ground running and expand quickly into new categories and markets.”
SPARC, which is partially owned by ABG, is the operating company for Aéropostale and Nautica. Through this new acquisition, SPARC will assume the role of core licensee and operating partner for Lucky Brand and will oversee all sourcing, product design, development, wholesale, operations of the brand’s North American retail stores and its e-commerce business. ABG will own the Lucky Brand intellectual property and oversee all licensing partnerships, new business and brand development. Brand marketing, which will be heavily focused on digital, social media and emerging platforms, will be shared by SPARC and ABG.
“Building on the foundation we’ve created with Aéropostale and Nautica, we are excited to partner with ABG to expand and enhance SPARC through Lucky Brand,” said Marc Miller, CEO, SPARC Group. “This acquisition will diversify our growing brand platform, which includes approximately 750 SPARC-owned and operated locations in the U.S., plus e-commerce and wholesale that collectively drive over $2 billion in retail sales annually.”
Lucky Brand has more than 175 locations and e-commerce businesses in North America and is available in select department stores, independent boutiques and on LuckyBrand.com.
