FUND NEWS
Tengram Capital Partners Announces Investment in Luciano Barbera
Todd Barrato Joins as CEO to Fuel Brand's Growth and Expansion
New York, NY - October 13, 2014 – Tengram Capital Partners ("Tengram") announced today that it has acquired a significant interest in the Luciano Barbera brand and business ("Luciano Barbera"), a leading ultra-luxury apparel brand and world-renowned arbiter of classic Italian style. Tengram is a Connecticut-based private equity firm that focuses exclusively on middle-market consumer and retail companies that own exceptional, highly recognizable brands.
Luciano Barbera offers a wide assortment of sportswear, sartorial pieces, furnishings and accessories designed primarily for the raffinato, or refined gentleman, whose quiet confidence and flair for color and pattern have become the brand's trademark. Products are sold through the finest specialty stores and high-end department stores across the U.S., Europe, Russia and elsewhere around the world. Luciano Barbera maintains a showroom at its Piedmont region headquarters, along with locations on Via Montenapoleone in Milano and Fifth Avenue in New York. Mr. Luciano Barbera, the Company's iconic founder once described as "the most elegant man in the world", will continue to serve as the brand's Chairman Emeritus going forward.
Carola Barbera, the Company's Creative Director, expressed her excitement about the new partnership and the growth prospects for the business. "Luciano Barbera is proud of its rich tradition of excellence in Italian manufacturing that my father and grandfather, Carlo Barbera, originated nearly 65 years ago. Our partnership with Tengram will accelerate the Company's ability to deliver our hand-crafted products to many more discerning customers around the world."
Concurrent with this investment, Tengram has recruited a seasoned Italian luxury apparel executive, Todd Barrato, to serve as Chief Executive Officer of Luciano Barbera. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Barrato served as Chief Executive Officer of North American operations for the Italian luxury men's brand Brioni, where he was responsible for growing wholesale sales and increasing market share in the retail network.
Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Barrato added, "I am thrilled to join Luciano Barbera as its new Chief Executive Officer at this exciting time in the brand's development. I look forward to working closely with Luciano, Carola and the entire Luciano Barbera team to enhance the brand's global awareness and continue to deliver the finest quality product for which the brand has always been known. I am also very pleased to partner with Tengram Capital on this opportunity. Tengram has extensive knowledge of our industry and I look forward to working with them on executing the playbook we have created to grow Luciano Barbera into one of the leading ultra-luxury Italian brands."
Tengram invests in and partners with companies across the consumer sector. The firm invests in strong brands and management teams and acts as a catalyst to drive the growth of the companies in which it invests. Tengram's principals have significant consumer expertise and focus on certain segments, including apparel, accessories, sporting goods, home furnishings and health and beauty.
William Sweedler, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Tengram, stated, "We are excited to work with the entire Luciano Barbera team in the continued development of this iconic Italian ultra-luxury brand. Having previously evaluated a number of opportunities in this category, we found Luciano Barbera to be particularly compelling, given its authentic heritage and dedication to manufacturing the finest quality products entirely in Italy. We have tremendous respect for what Luciano and his family have been able to accomplish with the Luciano Barbera brand over the years. We are thrilled to have Todd and several other seasoned luxury apparel executives join Carola and the rest of the Luciano Barbera team to drive the brand's expansion through existing wholesale partners in the U.S. and abroad, along with planned investment in owned retail store development."
ABOUT LUCIANO BARBERA:
Luciano Barbera is a leading ultra-luxury apparel brand and world-renowned arbiter of classic Italian style. The Company offers a wide assortment of sportswear, sartorial pieces, furnishings and accessories designed primarily for the raffinato, or refined gentleman, whose quiet confidence and flair for color and pattern have become the brand's trademark. Products are sold through the finest specialty stores and high-end department stores across the U.S., Russia, Europe and elsewhere around the world. Mr. Luciano Barbera, the iconic founder once described as "the most elegant man in the world," continues to serve as the brand's Chairman Emeritus today. Visit www.lucianobarbera.it/dnn/home
ABOUT TENGRAM CAPITAL PARTNERS:
Tengram Capital Partners is a private equity firm that focuses exclusively on leading middle-market consumer and retail companies that own strong recognizable brands. The team has a diverse background of consumer investing and operating expertise that assists and guides company management to unlock the true potential of their brand. Tengram invests in both traditional "growth" and "restructuring/turnaround" situations in either the public or private sectors. Previous and current investments for Tengram and its predecessor investment entity, Windsong Brands, LLC, include Tommie Copper, Active Ride Shop, Deva Curl, Laura Geller Beauty, NEST Fragrances, Sequential Brands Group, Robert Graham, Joe Boxer, Joe's Jeans, Field & Stream, and Design Within Reach. Tengram's website is http://www.tengramcapital.com.