Iconix Brand Group is an American brand management company that licenses

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create a ...

s to retailers and manufacturers primarily in the

apparel Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natura ...

, footwear, and apparel accessory industries. Its brands are available in such stores as

Kohl's Kohl's (stylized in all caps) is an American department store retail chain, operated by Kohl's Corporation. it is the largest department store chain in the United States, with 1,165 locations, operating stores in every U.S. state except Hawa ...

Kmart Kmart Corporation ( , doing business as Kmart and stylized as kmart) is an American retail company that owns a chain of big box department stores. The company is headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, United States. The company was inco ...

Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began ...

Macy's Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...

Nordstrom Nordstrom, Inc. () is an American luxury department store chain headquartered in Seattle, Washington, and founded by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin in 1901. The original Wallin & Nordstrom store operated exclusively as a shoe store, a ...

Target Target may refer to: Physical items * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artillery, fi ...

and

JC Penney Penney OpCo LLC, doing business as JCPenney and often abbreviated JCP, is a midscale American department store chain operating 667 stores across 49 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. Departments inside JCPenney stores include Mens, Womens, Boys, Girl ...

History and operations

The company began as Candie's, Inc., whose brand it purchased in 1993. The Bongo brand was purchased in 1998. The Badgley Mischka brand was purchased in 2004. The Joe Boxer and Rampage brands were acquired on July 22, 2005, and September 15, 2005, respectively. In 2006, the company acquired the

Mudd Mudd is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Daniel Mudd (born 1956), American CEO, son of Roger Mudd * David Mudd (1933–2020), English politician * Harvey Seeley Mudd (1888–1955), American mining engineer, namesake of Harvey ...

, London Fog, Mossimo, and

Ocean Pacific Ocean Pacific Apparel Corp. (Ocean Pacific or OP) is a clothing company based in Irvine, California, United States. It produces T-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, and beverage mugs. History The first "Ocean Pacific" trademark brand was started by ...

brands on April 11, August 29, November 1, and November 6, respectively. The company continued with acquisitions in 2007 with the purchase of

Cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder duri ...

, Danskin, Artful Dodger, and Rocawear brands. On November 15, 2007, Iconix bought the Starter brand from Nike. On October 27, 2009, Iconix paid $109 million for a 51% stake in urban fashion brand Eckō Unltd. It acquired full ownership in May 2013. On June 3, 2010, Iconix and Charles M. Schulz Creative Associates jointly acquired all assets related to the ''

Peanuts ''Peanuts'' is a print syndication, syndicated daily strip, daily and Sunday strip, Sunday American comic strip written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz. The strip's original run extended from 1950 to 2000, continuing in reruns afterward. ' ...

'' comic strip from its longtime owner,

United Media United Media was a large editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States, owned by the E. W. Scripps Company, that operated from 1978 to 2011. It syndicated 150 comics and editorial columns worldwide. Its ...

, using the property to form a new company, Peanuts Worldwide, which is 80% owned by Iconix and 20% owned by Schulz Associates. Peanuts Worldwide also acquired United Media's licensing arm, which represents licensing for its other properties including ''

Dilbert ''Dilbert'' is an American comic strip written and illustrated by Scott Adams, first published on April 16, 1989. It is known for its satirical office humor about a white-collar, micromanaged office with engineer Dilbert as the title cha ...

'' and '' Nancy''. In 2011, Iconix acquired electronics brand

The Sharper Image Sharper Image is an American brand that offers consumers home electronics, air purifiers, gifts, and other high-tech lifestyle products through its website, catalog, and third-party retailers. The brand is owned by ThreeSixty Group, with the U.S. ...

. In October 2012,

Nike Inc. Nike, Inc. (stylized as NIKE) is an American multinational corporation that is engaged in the design, development, manufacturing, and worldwide marketing and sales of footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories, and services. The company is head ...

announced that it had signed with Iconix Brand Group to sell the English brand Umbro for US$225 million. The acquisition was completed in December 2012. In 2013, Iconix acquired Lee Cooper from

Sun Capital Partners Sun Capital Partners, Inc., is an American private equity firm specializing in leveraged buyouts. Sun Capital was founded in 1995 by Marc J. Leder and Rodger Krouse, former classmates at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and ...

. In February 2013, Iconix acquired control of the Buffalo David Bitton brand in an effort to expand into higher-end brands. Iconix paid Buffalo International ULC $76.5 million in cash for a 51% stake in the brand. In February 2015, Iconix bought the

Strawberry Shortcake Strawberry shortcake may refer to: * Strawberry shortcake (dessert), a shortcake served with strawberries * "Strawberry Shortcake, Huckleberry Pie," a song published in 1956; a version by The Brother Sisters was released by Mercury Records in 1960 ...

brand from

American Greetings American Greetings Corporation is a privately owned American company and is the world's second largest greeting card producer behind Hallmark Cards. Based in Westlake, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, the company sells paper greeting cards, electroni ...

. Also that month, Iconix and Anthony L&S Athletics, LLC acquired intangible assets of

Pony A pony is a type of small horse (''Equus ferus caballus''). Depending on the context, a pony may be a horse that is under an approximate or exact height at the withers, or a small horse with a specific conformation and temperament. Compared t ...

along with North American rights to the brand from Symphony Holdings, LLC, with the option to purchase additional markets. A new subsidiary, with 75% and 25% stakes owned by Iconix and Anthony L&S Athletics respectively, would hold the Pony rights. In 2015, several top executives, including founder Neil Cole, resigned following a statement that Iconix was under investigation by the

Securities and Exchange Commission The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against mark ...

. The investigation was triggered by Iconix's 2014 financial statements, after which it received a letter from the SEC. Stock prices fell 24% after Iconix confirmed the investigation. On December 5, 2019, the SEC charged Iconix and three of its former top executives with fraud. The COO, Seth Horowitz, pleaded guilty to the charges, and Iconix agreed to pay a $5.5 million penalty. As of July 2020, the suit against the founder and previous CEO, Neil Cole, is still ongoing. In 2017, Iconix sold Badgley Mischka and The Sharper Image. On May 10, 2017, DHX Media announced that it had acquired the Iconix entertainment division for $345 million. The sale was closed on June 30, 2017, giving DHX rights to the ''

'' franchise, and more prominently, the 80% majority stake of Peanuts Worldwide. On October 15, 2018, Iconix announced the hiring of Robert Galvin as CEO. On July 14, 2020, Iconix announced that the company is up for sale. The next year, the company went private with equity investor Lancer Capital LLC purchasing all outstanding shares and delisting it from

Nasdaq The Nasdaq Stock Market () (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations Stock Market) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the US by volume, and ranked second ...

Federal investigations

After investigations in 2003, Neil Cole and Candie's reached an agreement to settle charges of fraudulent accounting practices brought against it by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Neil Cole agreed to pay $75,000 to settle charges without admitting or denying wrongdoing. In 2019, Cole was again charged with 10 criminal counts, including conspiracy, securities fraud, making false filings with the SEC and conspiracy to destroy records. Iconix agreed to pay a civil penalty of $5.5 million to settle the SEC's claims.

Brands

Through its history, Iconix has owned a large portfolio of brands, which include:Brands archive
on IBG, August 17, 2020

Current

* Artful Dodger * Bongo * Buffalo David Bitton * Candie's * Cannon Mills * Charisma * Danskin * Ed Hardy * Eckō Unltd. and Marc Eckō Cut & Sew * Fieldcrest * Joe Boxer * Lee Cooper * London Fog * Material Girl * Modern Amusement * Mossimo *

/OP *

* Rampage * Rocawear * Royal Velvet * Starter * Umbro * Waverly *

Zoo York Zoo York may refer to: * Zoo York (Central Park), style and social philosophy inspired by 1970s New York City graffiti art subculture *Zoo York (company) Zoo York is an American company focused on the skateboarding market. The company currently c ...

Former brands

Pillowtex Pillowtex Corporation was a United States textile manufacturing company from 1954 to 2003. Beginning as a pillow manufacturer, the company diversified and manufactured bedsheets under various brand names. The company was officially declared bank ...

* Truth or Dare * Badgley Mischka (2004–17) * Peanuts Worldwide (80%; 2010–17); sold in 2017 to DHX Media (now WildBrain) *

(2011–17) *

acquired in 2015 from

; sold in 2017 to DHX Media (now WildBrain)

References

External links

* {{Iconix Brand Group Branding companies of the United States Companies based in New York City Marketing companies established in 1978 Sportswear brands Clothing brands of the United States Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq Dancewear companies