OAMC Founders Buy Back Minority Stake From Onward Italia

MILAN — OAMC cofounders Luke Meier and Arnaud Faeh have repurchased the minority stake in their company, which they had formerly sold to Onward Italia in 2018.

“Our partnership with Onward has been very successful and we are immensely proud of what we have accomplished together. The project has matured a lot over the past three years, while never veering away from our initial vision,” said Meier, who is the brand’s creative director. In particular, in this period the label continued to present its collections at Paris Men’s Fashion Week, widened its global distribution — including the launch of its e-commerce store — and collaborated with brands such as Adidas and Supreme.

“We felt that this was the right time to regain full control over the company, and to put ourselves in the best position to bring the brand to yet another level. Our current enthusiasm and ambitions echo the state of mind that we shared when we started the project in 2018, but with so much more to build on and to expect,” added Faeh.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

At the time of the deal with OAMC, Onward Italia was the controlling company of Onward Luxury Group — or OLG — and under the umbrella of Japanese fashion conglomerate Onward Holdings Co. Ltd. As reported, the Tokyo-based apparel giant sold OLG at the end of last year. Through a management buyout, entrepreneur Franco Pené, together with Fabio Ducci and Antonello Orunesu Preiata, chief executive officer and chief financial officer of OLG, respectively, have taken full control of the company, renaming it HIM Co SpA — High Italian Manufacturing.

Designed and developed in Italy, OAMC’s offering encompasses men’s ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories and small leather goods. International stockists include Antonioli and Slam Jam in Milan, Harrods and Selfridges in London, Le Bon Marché in Paris, Lane Crawford and Galeries Lafayette in Shanghai, Dover Street Market Ginza and Isetan in Tokyo, Bloomingdales in Dubai, and Harvey Nichols in Doha.

In addition to his role at OAMC, Meier is also Jil Sander’s creative director together with his wife Lucie Meier. Jil Sander was owned by Onward Holdings since 2008 before OTB took over the company earlier this month.

Source: Read Full Article