TowerBrook Capital Partners, (U.K.) LLP (“TowerBrook”), the international private equity firm, President and Founder Tamara Mellon and CEO Robert Bensoussan, in partnership with the rest of the management team of Jimmy Choo, today announce the acquisition of Jimmy Choo from Lion Capital for an enterprise value of £185m. TowerBrook will be the lead investor and majority owner of the company. Gala Capital, the Spanish private equity firm, will also invest in the transaction.
Jimmy Choo was founded in 1996 in London as a women’s luxury shoe business, opening its first store in Motcomb Street. Since 2001, Jimmy Choo’s management team, including Robert Bensoussan, Tamara Mellon and Sandra Choi, has substantially grown the business and created one of the most successful and iconic brands in the luxury goods sector and the fashion world today. Jimmy Choo now has over 60 branded stores worldwide, including recently opened stores in Chicago, Hong Kong, Miami, Singapore and Tokyo. The range of products has also been successfully extended from shoes to bags and small leather goods. Jimmy Choo sales have grown since 2001 at a compound rate of over 45% to more than £65m today.
Tamara Mellon will continue to have direct oversight of Jimmy Choo’s creative direction and image and promotional activities, working in close collaboration with the long-standing Creative Director Sandra Choi. Robert Bensoussan, Jimmy Choo’s Chief Executive since 2001, will continue to oversee the company’s development, including its international reach and luxury ranges. He will also work alongside TowerBrook to seek potential acquisitions in the luxury goods sector.
Commenting on the acquisition, Ramez Sousou, Co-CEO of TowerBrook, said:
“TowerBrook is delighted to acquire Jimmy Choo, one of the most innovative and successful brands in the luxury goods sector. Jimmy Choo has achieved world-wide renown almost unparalleled for such a young brand and we look forward to working with the management team to continue Jimmy Choo’s dramatic growth and success.”
Tamara Mellon, President and Founder, Jimmy Choo, said
”Jimmy Choo is a brand which is raising the spirits and capturing the hearts of women all over the world. This new partnership will not only give us the ability to meet the demand that is creating for our range of products, but also achieve my original vision for Jimmy Choo to be one of the world’s most treasured luxury brands. This is why I decided to remain a significant shareholder of Jimmy Choo.”
Commenting on the sale, Lyndon Lea, Founding Partner of Lion Capital, said:
"Since acquiring Jimmy Choo in 2004, we have enjoyed partnering with Tamara and Robert in developing Jimmy Choo into one of the most prominent luxury women's brands in the world. Under our ownership, Jimmy Choo has expanded from 23 stores to an international footprint of over 60 sites. Major openings across the world have included San Francisco, Boston, London, Madrid, Paris and Omotosando, Japan. We believe that substantial potential remains for the Jimmy Choo brand, particularly in Asia. Having realised our return expectations we have decided to exit our investment thereby enabling fresh capital to support the next stage of Jimmy Choo's development. We have every confidence in Tamara and Robert in conjunction with their new partner, TowerBrook, and wish them success in the continued growth of the Jimmy Choo brand.”
Robert Bensoussan, Chief Executive, Jimmy Choo, said:
“In our tenth anniversary year, we are enthusiastic about the opportunity to combine TowerBrook’s expertise and international approach with our industry know-how. The Jimmy Choo brand has great potential for further growth and we are committed to developing it both internationally and through extended ranges. I am also excited at the prospect of working alongside TowerBrook to make further acquisitions in the luxury goods sector.”
Karim Saddi, Managing Director at TowerBrook, further added:
“The acquisition of Jimmy Choo enables TowerBrook to acquire a unique brand and partner with a very ambitious and successful management team whom we can support in their growth strategy and we look forward to working with Robert on further acquisitions”.
