CITIC Capital buys Japan apparel brand

Set up in 2005, Mark Styler designs and sells women's clothing under several brands including MercuryDuo, Emoda, Dazzlin, Murua, and Ungrid. The company operates over 170 own-branded stores at shopping centers across Japan. It also promotes its brand via its e-commerce portal Runway Channel.

According to a release, the company sees China as a major growth driver as it looks to capitalize on both the rise in the consumer spending among China's growing middle class and the surge of in-bound tourism in Japan. CITIC Capital says it intends to support company by leveraging its resources and network in China and the rest of Asia.

There have been a number of deals involving Japanese apparel companies in recent years. In 2013, CLSA Capital Partners exited its majority stake in Baroque Japan to CDH Investments and Chinese women's shoe retailer Belle International. Belle acquired a 31.96% stake in company for $94 million, while CDH bought 23% for an undisclosed amount. They planned to boost the company's China presence.

In the same year, J-Star exited Tokyo clothing brand Olive des Olive to wholesale company Takisada-Osaka, securing a return of more than 3x and an estimated IRR of 35-40%.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• North Asia
• Consumer
• Buyouts
• Japan
• Consumer
• buyout
• CITIC Capital