Champ is getting into the game for real with a minority investment in Rhoback that will put its mix of investment savvy and athlete wrangling to work.
The group is a strategic partnership between consumer private equity giant L Catterton; investment platform Patricof Co, which “operationalizes the cultural impact of athletes-as-shareholders at scale,” and more than 250 top global athletes.
Champ is short for Champion Athlete Managing Partner and represents a new approach to linking fashion with the high-powered world of sports celebrity.
You May Also Like
Rhoback, the group’s first investment, will use the new money to support its expansion following its first store and grow its wholesale and collegiate licensing businesses.
The company was founded a decade ago by friends Kevin Hubbard, Kristina Loftus and Matthew Loftus, who retain control of the business and still guide operations.
This is the first time that Rhoback, which has been profitable from its start, has raised any outside capital. The brand has more than 2 million customers worldwide, has shipped more than 3.5 million orders and has over 100 employees. Revenues last year topped $150 million.
“Rhoback represents exactly the kind of brand Champ was designed to support,” said Scott Dahnke, global chief executive officer of L Catterton. “The company has built a distinctive brand through premium products, authentic storytelling, and a deeply engaged community. We believe Rhoback is well positioned to benefit from Champ’s unique combination of consumer expertise and athlete engagement.”
Rhoback was an early leader in the Name, Image and Likeness business, partnering with many of college football’s most recognizable student-athletes, developing one of the fastest-growing collegiate licensing businesses in apparel, according to Champ.
“Rhoback approached NIL differently than most brands,” said Caleb Downs, first round pick of the Dallas Cowboys. “They built meaningful relationships with athletes, prominently featuring us in national marketing campaigns and treating us like true partners. As one of the first and best brands to navigate this space, they’ve earned incredible credibility with college athletes and the universities that support them.”
The cofounders said: “When we started the company, we had no apparel experience and no outside funding — just a passion to create the highest-quality apparel that kept up with our active lives. We’ve grown one customer at a time by creating products we believe are the best on the market and fostering a community around our ‘Crave Activity’ lifestyle.”
