Ted Baker owner secures £394m investment
Authentic Brands Group, which owns retailers including Ted Baker, Reebok, and Hunter, has secured a $500m (£394.1m) investment from a global growth equity firm.
The American retail giant received the funding from one of its current investors, General Atlantic, to support plans for worldwide expansion.
General Atlantic and Authentic first partnered in October 2017, with the most recent investment bringing the firm’s total investment capital in the retail group to nearly $2bn (£1.58bn).
Since General Atlantic’s initial investment, Authentic has made nearly 30 acquisitions, and diversified its platform through other companies in media, outdoor, events and experiences, and studios.
In 2022, Authentic began a strategic partnership with ex-footballer David Beckham to co-own and manage his global brand; completed its largest ever acquisition with the purchase of Reebok; and finalised the takeover of Ted Baker.
Authentic says its portfolio of 40+ brands generates over $25bn (£19.71bn) in global retail sales annually, and has a presence in over 10,800 shops and concessions and 380,000 points-of-sale internationally.
Andrew Crawford, managing director and global head of consumer at General Atlantic, said: “Looking ahead, we believe Authentic is positioned for continued diversification across categories, license partners, geographies and distribution channels, with immense whitespace in digital and e-commerce particularly. We are thrilled to continue collaborating with Authentic to further scale its differentiated portfolio of brands.”
Authentic’s other larger shareholders include BlackRock, CVC Capital Partners, Simon Property Group, HPS Investment Partners, Leonard Green & Partners, and Brookfield.