Daily Front Row

2009 December 4

Thom Brown Sells Majority Stake

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Thom Browne in November
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(NEW YORK) Thom Browne has sold a 67% majority stake of his business to Japanese apparel firm Cross Company. This marks an evolution of a relationship that began in August, when Browne sold a 20% stake to the firm, which operates 200 stores in Asia and is led by its president Yasuharu Ishikawa.

Browne's search for an investor was a nearly two-year affair, given that the designer was intent on maintaining a minority share so that he would retain the rights to his name. “It took a while for me to find somebody who understood what I really was about as a designer, and not just the suit but they lifestyle of the guy wearing the suit,” Browne told The New York Times' Eric Wilson. “A lot of people forget we are business people, too.”

Cross Company will appoint new management, replacing Thom Browne's CEO Josh Sparks, who joined the company in July after a stint at HL Group.  Sparks founded Rockwood Consulting Group, which bought Tara Subkoff's brands for $2.5 million before shutting them down in December 2008. Prior to that, he served as CEO of Sass & Bide.

Thom Browne generates annual sales of approximately $6.5 million. While the designer is mostly known for his avant-garde fashions (such as cropped pants and seersucker short-suits), Browne has gained more mass appeal with his Black Fleece collection for Brooks Brothers, which has its own store on Bleecker Street. Browne is also designing the Moncler Gamme Bleu line for men; Giambattista Valli is responsible for the women's collection.

According to the Times, Browne intends to use the capital infusion to grow is eponymous collection, adding sweats and t-shirts to his suiting, which often costs around $4,000. Browne is also toying with the idea of showing his collections in Paris; expansion in Asia is already underway.
ASHLEY BAKER