IKE
CAPITAL
RECALIBRATING ACQUISITIONS
INTO VIBRANT, PROFITABLE ASSETS
IKE CAPITAL is a family office specializing in the strategic acquisition and repositioning of undervalued alternative investments. The platform focuses on identifying struggling entities with strong underlying fundamentals in the real estate, branding, and licensing spaces and leveraging those fundamentals to turn the business around. IKE CAPITAL draws on the extensive experience of its founder, Ike S. Franco, in the alternative investments space. The platform’s numerous success stories are a testament to its ability to not only identify the right opportunities, but to also execute the right strategy for their repositioning.
Case Studies
Starter was founded in 1971 as a clothing manufacturer focused on branded major league sports team apparel. The company was made famous in the 1990s for its branded breakaway pullover jackets, partnering with teams in the MLB, NBA, NHL, NFL, and Canadian Football League.
Through IKE CAPITAL, INFINITY BRANDS acquired Starter in 1999. Upon acquisition, the company identified a lack of authentic brands in mass market distribution and proceeded to reposition Starter to fill that void. In 2000, Starter partnered with Walmart and Target to offer true sports performance apparel and footwear at an affordable price point. The company was sold to Nike in 2004 and, due to INFINITY BRANDS’ re-positioning and engagement strategy, now exceeds $1B in sales at retail.
The New York Yankees have more world championships than any other franchise in sports history. The team is one of the most recognizable sports icons in the world and has an extremely passionate and loyal fan base that translates to a highly receptive consumer audience.
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Yankee fans live a Yankee lifestyle, and INFINITY BRANDS’ licensing programs encompass several consumer goods, including food and beverage, fragrance and body care, and home goods, that meet fan demand in creative ways.
Pillowtex represents the original portfolio of four present-day iconic home brands: Cannon Mills, Royal Velvet, Fieldcrest and Charisma. As an established leader in home textiles within retail, these brands offered the customer variety through designs that maintain quality and comfort.
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Upon acquisition of the Pillowtex portfolio, IKE CAPITAL set out to realign Pillowtex’s brand portfolio with the proper retail distribution by consumer segment and charted a path to growth by expanding distribution networks through each brand’s unique customer segments. The company was able to position the brands in major retailers like Wal-Mart, Target, Kohl's, JC Penney, and Better Department Stores to expand the breadth of distribution while curating specific markets for multiple consumer segments. Today, the brands collectively exceed $1B in sales at retail.
Through IKE Capital, INFINITY GLOBAL has a proven record of rejuvenating brands and partnering with globally-recognized franchises.