Another week, another acquisition for Catalog Holdings, a subsidiary of Golden Gate Capital. On Nov. 10 the private equity conglomerate completed the recapitalization of Venus Swimwear. In addition to the Venus catalog of women’s swimwear, Venus Swimwear includes silk undergarment and accessories title WinterSilks and swimwear manufacturer Venus Manufacturing. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Venus will continue to operate at its current locations, including headquarters in Jacksonville, FL; its buying office in Boca Raton, FL;, its manufacturing facilities in upstate New York; and its WinterSilks headquarters in Madison, WI. Daryle Scott will remain CEO of Venus.
Venus and WinterSilks complement the other apparel titles in the Catalog Holdings stable, which includes Spiegel, Newport News, Carabella, A.B. Lambdin, Norm Thompson, Solutions, Sahalie, Haband, Appleseed’s, Draper’s & Damon’s, and The Tog Shop.
The women’s swimwear market is one of the fastest-growing segments of the $100 billion women’s apparel market, according to Golden Gate. In addition to Venus, Carabella and A.B. Lambden sell primarily swimwear, which is also a major category for Newport News.
While Venus skews toward younger buyers, as does Newport News, WinterSilks targets affluent, educated men and women over the age of 50. Aging baby-boomers are the fastestgrowing segment of the population and is expected to grow by more than 45% over the next 15 years, according to a Golden Gate release. Haband, Appleseed’s, Draper’s & Damon’s, and The Tog Shop target that older demographic as well.
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