Aritzia is accelerating its product expansion strategy for men’s through a definitive agreement to acquire Reigning Champ, a designer and manufacturer of premium athletic wear.
Aritzia, a vertically integrated, innovative design house offering “everyday luxury” online and in its boutiques, will acquire 75 percent of Reigning Champ based on a total enterprise value of approximately $63 million, with the remaining 25 percent equity interest purchased through 2026.
“We’re excited to welcome Reigning Champ. Rooted in classic, timeless athletic wear, their brand has been carefully curated for just short of 15 years,” said Brian Hill, founder, CEO and chairman of Aritzia. “Building on Aritzia’s strong start to fiscal 2022, this acquisition meaningfully accelerates our product expansion into men’s while bringing incremental growth to our already surging women’s e-commerce and U.S. businesses. Capitalizing on our world-class operational expertise and infrastructure, men’s, merchandised independently, will become a meaningful part of Aritzia’s platform through our Reigning Champ acquisition.”
Inspired by the culture of sport, Reigning Champ is a designer and manufacturer of premium athletic wear, with a focus on materials and craftmanship. Reigning Champ is sold in digital and retail locations throughout the world, and as a result of the acquisition, will see an immediate benefit in tapping into Aritzia’s infrastructure and operational expertise.
“As an innovative design house offering exceptional experiences through its online and retail platforms, Aritzia’s well-established track record as a successful direct-to-consumer business is one that we’ve long admired,” said Craig Atkinson, co-founder and CEO of Reigning Champ. “Leveraging Aritzia’s unparalleled world-class infrastructure and expertise, this partnership provides an exciting path forward to elevate Reigning Champ to the next level as a premium athletic wear brand. We look forward to working with the incredibly talented Aritzia team to capitalize on the limitless opportunities ahead.”
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Atkinson is joined on Reigning Champ’s senior leadership team by co-founder and vice president of manufacturing Chris Nordee and chief financial officer Paul Heathcote. They will continue operating the business in partnership with Aritzia through a transition period of approximately five years to allow both businesses to focus on sustaining their brands and cultures while leveraging mutually beneficial synergies and efficiencies to an accelerated path forward.
Reigning Champ is expected to deliver approximately $25 million in revenue and $5 million in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) in calendar 2021.
Financo | Raymond James served as financial advisors to Aritzia, with Borden Ladner Gervais LLP acting as legal counsel. RBC Mid-Market Mergers & Acquisitions served as financial advisors to Reigning Champ, with Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP acting as legal counsel.