True Religion was acquired by PE firm Jay Schottenstein | Wilnesh News

Jeans brand True Religion has been acquired by private equity firm Acon Investments and American Eagle affiliate SB360 Capital Partners – a retail investment fund chaired by the retailer’s CEO Jay Schottenstein, CNBC has learned.

The millennial-era denim brand has made a comeback under company veteran and CEO Michael Buckley and was sold last year after a second bankruptcy in 2020.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Last year, the company expected to sell for a mid-single-digit multiple of its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. According to previous reports by CNBC, True Religion’s sales will grow by 20% in 2023, reaching US$280 million, with EBITDA of US$80 million.

“Our partnership with ACON and SB360 represents an exciting new chapter for True Religion,” Buckley said in a statement. “With their expertise and resources, we are ready to enhance our digital and retail capabilities and accelerate our of international growth and continue to innovate our apparel products.”

Washington, D.C.-based Acon has $7.2 billion in assets under management and has previously invested in other popular consumer brands, including Applebee’s, Igloo, Spirit Hawaii and Borden Dairy, according to its website. SB360 is a strategic partner of Acon and part of Chairman Schottenstein’s network of companies, which includes American Eagle and DSW. The Company is a retail investment firm that invests equity capital to support growth opportunities.

True Religion has found a new home after transforming from a run-down brand clinging to its luxury roots into an urban staple and partnering with hip-hop stars like Megan Thee Stallion, who is the face of the retailer’s 2024 holiday campaign.

The comeback comes from a marketing strategy led by chief marketing officer Kristen D’Arcy, who is focused on working with strategic influencers like Jayda Cheaves, a content creator with nearly 9 million followers on Instagram. True Religion also benefited from some good timing, which is crucial to the success of a fashion brand. Jeans have recently become one of the hottest segments in the apparel industry, with millennial fashion making a comeback among younger shoppers, making brands like Ed Hardy and Von Dutch popular again.

True Religion was founded in 2002, Known for their signature stitching, smiling Buddha and horseshoe logo, the $300 jeans are loved by A-listers including Jessica Simpson and Britney Spears. However, by the 2010s, the company had lost momentum, fell out of favor with consumers, and went bankrupt in 2017.

True Religion eventually emerged from that bankruptcy, filed for bankruptcy a second time at the height of the coronavirus pandemic, and went bankrupt again in 2020.

Buckley, who ran the company in the 2000s, returned in 2019 to cut expenses and attract new consumers, who tend to be more diverse and have average incomes of about $60,000 to $65,000. At the same time, the typical price of its jeans has dropped to less than $100 a pair, making it easier to appeal to its target customer base and in line with competitors such as Levi Strauss.

“You have to know who your consumers are. Before I came back, the previous management in 2010 was still trying to market to who they thought their consumers were,” Buckley told CNBC last year. “Like, they left the brand. There’s a lot more followers there[today]than there were early adopters who wanted the brand back then.”

At the time, Buckley said True Religion had the potential to become a billion-dollar brand. To achieve this goal, the company has been working to expand its product range, promote direct sales online rather than through wholesalers, and attract more women.