JCPenney and SPARC Group announced that they have combined to form a new organization, Catalyst Brands, creating a portfolio of six iconic retail banners. Catalyst Brands combines SPARC Group’s brands Aéropostale, Brooks Brothers, Eddie Bauer, Lucky Brand and Nautica with JCPenney and its exclusive private brands, including Stafford, Arizona, and Liz Claiborne.
Catalyst Brands has served over 60 million customers over the past three years and has broad consumer reach through a distribution network of owned stores, e-commerce sites, and wholesale partners.
Catalyst Brands launches with over $9 billion of revenue, 1,800 store locations, 60,000 employees, and $1 billion of liquidity and is poised to generate significant strategic and operational value. And the combined Catalyst Brands organization is a joint venture formed in an all-equity transaction between JCPenney and SPARC Group, with shareholders Simon Property Group, Brookfield Corporation, Authentic Brands Group, and Shein. Catalyst Brands has also sold Reebok’s U.S. operations and is exploring strategic options for Forever 21.
Marc Rosen (formerly JCPenney’s chief executive officer) has become Catalyst Brands’s CEO. And there are three brand CEOs who will oversee the portfolio that report to Rosen. Michelle Wlazlo (formerly the chief merchandising and supply chain officer of JCPenney) has been promoted to Brand CEO of JCPenney. Natalie Levy continues as Brand CEO of Aéropostale, Lucky Brand, and Nautica, and Ken Ohashi will continue leading Brooks Brothers and has assumed responsibility of Eddie Bauer in his new role as Brand CEO of both brands. Kevin Harper (formerly an executive with Walmart) will join Catalyst Brands as chief operating officer. Marisa Thalberg (formerly the consulting chief marketing and brand officer of JCPenney) has become the chief customer and marketing officer of Catalyst Brands.
With offerings that include business and formal fashion from Brooks Brothers, casual apparel for teenagers and young adults from Aéropostale, outdoor recreation clothing and gear from Eddie Bauer to everyday style for every family from JCPenney, and more, Catalyst Brands has expansive reach across market and customer segments. And Catalyst Brands will integrate complementary strengths, including strong product design and sourcing capabilities, deep supplier relationships and a growing use of data-driven and AI technology to enhance its supply chain and inventory management capabilities and to deepen consumer relationships.
Catalyst Brands is based at the current corporate location of JCPenney in Plano, Texas, with offices in New York, Los Angele,s and Seattle.
KEY QUOTES:
“Catalyst Brands brings together the rich heritage of six unique brands with modern energy and a new vision for success. The word ‘catalyst’ reflects our drive to accelerate innovation and energy and amplify the impact of this powerhouse portfolio. Together, we bring scale, expertise and broad appeal to customers across America. For us, customers are at the heart of what we do. We have a shared belief that customers deserve fashion and style of great quality for any and every moment in life. We will leverage our resources and best-in-class industry talent to grow our brands further.”
“Our relationships with more than 60 million customers and the deep data we have create a compelling consumer value proposition across our brands. We can design a more personalized shopping experience, offer unified loyalty and credit card programs, and ultimately, cross-sell more effectively. That’s one example of the many benefits we’ll see in this combination. With a clean balance sheet, we’re in great position to move forward.”
– Marc Rosen
