Jason Rabin Leads Management Buyout of Centric Brands, Taking Majority Stake

Centric Brands closed on Friday a management-led buyout that returns majority control to chief executive officer Jason Rabin and hands exits to private equity owners Blackstone, Ares Management and HPS Investment Partners, the company confirmed in an exclusive interview on Nov. 2 at its New York headquarters.

The new investor group comprises Axar Capital Management, M-Cor Capital LLC, MSP Sports Capital and Jarrod Kahn, Centric's group president. Rabin stays on as CEO, and the management team continues to lead the company. The business generated more than $3 billion in revenue last year and employs 2,600 people across 26 offices worldwide.

"Until now the company has been owned by Blackstone, Ares and HPS, three world-class private equity firms that have been with me since 2018," Rabin said. "They were supportive, but they're private equity. Private equity is an investment, and after a point in time, it's time. So with me being an entrepreneur in this business, I wanted my company back."

Rabin said he approached friends and industry contacts, told them he wanted to buy back his business, and asked for their support. The deal closed Friday.

Who are the new owners?

MSP Sports Capital, led by CEO Jeff Moorad, signaled growth ambitions in sports. "We look for exceptional leadership teams with the infrastructure to win over the long term, and Centric has both," Moorad said. "Jason and the Centric team have built a platform with the scale, strategy and operating discipline to keep growing across brands, categories and markets. We are proud to join them as partners, particularly as the company continues to grow on the sports side."

Kahn, previously group president of accessories, said: "I'm looking forward to continuing to work with Jason as we drive toward his long-term global vision. We are incredibly optimistic about the future of Centric brands."

Rabin framed the deal as strategic rather than financial. "This is about continuing to build a blue-chip company in this space," he said. "That's all I'm focusing on, to build a company with quality and integrity, transparency and authenticity."

What does the portfolio look like?

Centric manages more than 100 licensed and owned brands spanning men's, women's and kids' apparel, accessories and beauty. Licensed names include Calvin Klein, Coach, Dockers, Michael Kors, Tommy Hilfiger, Ugg and Under Armour. Entertainment properties include Disney, Marvel, Paramount and Universal.

The company sells across every major channel. Distribution runs from Walmart to Neiman Marcus, through off-price players TJ Maxx, Ross and Burlington, wholesale clubs including Sam's Club, and Amazon. "I would find it hard to find a place that we don't sell," Rabin said. "The diversity of our portfolio makes us special."

The business operates through three platforms:

• Centric Powered — the operating engine running brand building, design, manufacturing, distribution and brand protection end-to-end for licensed brands including Under Armour, Michael Kors, Coach, Kate Spade, Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Timberland, Esprit and Ugg. It is the largest pillar.
• Centric Ventures — a partnership platform backing founders such as Favorite Daughter, John Elliott, Eastside Golf and Jennifer Fisher with sourcing, supply chain, distribution and financing while founders keep voice and vision.
• Centric Collective — the ownership engine acquiring and managing brand IP, including Avirex, Hudson Jeans and Robert Graham.

Esprit, launched a year ago from scratch, is "the fastest-growing" brand in the portfolio, Rabin said. Off-White, Herve Leger, John Elliott and Jennifer Fisher perform strongest at the top department store tier. In entertainment, Centric holds exclusives with Disney for sleepwear and works with the NBA, NHL, Amazon and arena operators.

Where is Centric expanding?

International investment remains the top priority. Centric has built offices in Milan, Amsterdam and London, and operates more than 16 offices in Asia, mostly sourcing operations. "We're going to start building wholesale and distribution offices there, so we can take brands and distribute them globally," Rabin said. "We have so many brands, these are all global brands, and they want global partners."

The company manufactures mostly throughout Asia, plus Central America and Mexico. It produces no footwear except slippers. "I'd rather focus on what we do," Rabin said.

Centric has invested more than $25 million in its global sourcing operation and runs distribution centers totaling 2.7 million square feet across California and New Jersey. Artificial intelligence plays a growing role. "We're using it in a major way on the back end of the business... We're seeing a tremendous amount of success on the front in terms of design," Rabin said. The company operates Centric IQ, an internal AI platform.

On acquisitions, Rabin targets brands generating $0 to $100 million in revenue, smaller than the deals pursued by global brand platforms like Authentic Brands Group. Unlike those firms, Centric makes product. "We're going to get consistent deal flow from companies like them because they're out buying every day," he said, calling the relationship a built-in growth engine. Centric declines brands that compete with existing portfolio names. "We've said no many times," Rabin said.

Centric was impacted by the Saks Global bankruptcy. "They were partners with us. They helped us through it, but we definitely were impacted," Rabin said.

What is the company's history?

Centric traces back to the publicly traded Differential Brands Group, acquired by Global Brands Group Holding Ltd. in 2018 and rebranded with Rabin, formerly GBG's North American president, as CEO. The pandemic pushed Centric into Chapter 11 in 2020. It emerged the same year under Blackstone as majority sponsor, with Ares and HPS, eliminating roughly $700 million of debt.

An initial public offering is not planned. "That's not in the cards today," Rabin said. "I think for a company like us, it's great to be private. Because there's so much opportunity and it's the fashion industry, so things move around and change a lot."

For the transaction, Jefferies LLC acted as exclusive financial adviser and Pryor Cashman LLP as legal counsel to management. Sidley Austin advised Axar Capital Management, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher advised M-Cor Capital — the investment arm of the Milken Family Office — and Morgan, Lewis & Bockius advised MSP Sports Capital. Solomon Partners served as financial adviser and Latham & Watkins as legal counsel to the seller group.

With staffing unchanged and a strategic plan set several years ago, Rabin signals continuity: continued brand portfolio expansion, deeper global operations and sustained investment under private ownership.