Gen Z Favorite Underwear Brand Gets Scooped by Fruit of the Loom Licensee — Retail Bum

Parade, an intimate ware brand popular among Gen Z consumers, is being acquired by Ariela & Associates International, an intimate clothing manufacturer and Fruit of the Loom licensee.

While the price of the deal has not been disclosed, Parade was last valued at $200 million in August 2022.

The deal will help Ariela tap into Parade’s tech-savvy and loyal customer base, while Parade will benefit from gaining access to Ariela’s business know-how and infrastructure.

“Parade’s commitment to inclusive fast fashion, which doesn’t compromise on its sustainable mission, aligns seamlessly with our core principles, and we believe that this union will allow us to create powerful synergies,” Ariela Esquenazi, Ariela & Associate’s CEO, said in a statement.

The acquisition comes at a time when direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands are struggling to grow their business amidst a challenging funding environment and high interest rates and are thus looking for an exit.

″[It] does fit with the whole ‘DTC winter’ thing. As interest rates rose, VC money for a lot of startups dried up,” retail analyst Nikki Baird from Aptos told CNBC. “Consolidation is the big opportunity, especially for big, traditional brands, to acquire more digitally savvy upstarts. This fits right into that pattern.”

Another DTC intimates brand that was recently acquired was CUUP. The brand was bought by FullBeauty Brands, which had acquired another plus-sized retail ELOQUII from Walmart three months before.

Photo credit: Parade

Originally published at https://retailbum.com on August 17, 2023.