Marquee Brands Acquires Martha Stewart® and Emeril Lagasse® Brands

NEW YORK, April 16, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Marquee Brands LLC, a leading global brand owner and marketer, announced today that it has signed a definitive purchase agreement to acquire the Martha Stewart and Emeril Lagasse brands and all related intellectual property from Sequential Brands Group (Nasdaq: SQBG). Through this acquisition, Marquee Brands will establish a leading Home and Food division with two preeminent brands, increasing the reach of its portfolio to over $2.3 billion in annual retail equivalent sales. In addition to this new division, the company currently operates in Women's Fashion, Men's Fashion and Active/Outdoor. Marquee Brands is owned by investor funds managed by Neuberger Berman.

The Martha Stewart brand is a diversified media and merchandising platform founded by Martha Stewart, an Emmy Award winning media personality, best-selling author, and revered lifestyle icon. The cherished brand's engaging content and thoughtfully designed products are built around Martha Stewart's lifelong mission to inspire the art of creative living.

Martha Stewart will join the Marquee Brands team and continue to guide the brand she founded. "I am thrilled to enter into this partnership with Marquee Brands, an organization that shares the entrepreneurial spirit and creativity on which I founded my business. In this ever-evolving retail and media environment, I am confident that Marquee's business values, sophisticated digital expertise and international relationships will drive continued growth and position the Martha Stewart brand well for the future. My team and I look forward to embarking on this next chapter," said Martha Stewart.

"Martha Stewart is a visionary whose educational mission and innovative approach has inspired millions of people to live more meaningfully. Martha Stewart branded products, known for their high quality, superior function and beautiful design, have enriched homes around the world," said Sam Porat, Managing Director, Neuberger Berman.

Founded by Emeril Lagasse, a James Beard Award winning chef, restauranteur, and media personality, the Emeril Lagasse brand has been celebrated by home cooks and professional chefs since he opened Emeril's Restaurant in 1990. Rooted in Emeril Lagasse's passion for food and mastery of Creole and Cajun cuisine, the brand's media and merchandise inspires consumers to share in the joy of cooking.

"This transformative acquisition allows Marquee Brands to enter the home, food, and media sectors," said Zachary Sigel, Managing Director, Neuberger Berman. "The addition of new partners, customers, and capabilities will further diversify Marquee Brands, improving its position as a preeminent global brand owner. The company is also excited to welcome Carolyn D'Angelo and her team. Carolyn is a proven executive with a track record of building brands in the home sector, who will serve as President of Marquee Brand's home division, and will contribute invaluable industry expertise to the organization in the next steps of its evolution."

Marquee Brands was founded in 2014 and has quickly developed a reputation for responsible brand stewardship coupled with an inventive approach to brand building. "We are committed to making impactful investments across marketing and our established e-commerce platform to support these brands. We look forward to this best-in-class team joining our organization to help us drive continued growth," said Michael DeVirgilio, President of Marquee Brands.

The acquisition, which is expected to close in the second quarter of 2019, is subject to customary closing conditions.

Media Contact:        

Neuberger Berman, Alex Samuelson, 212 476 5392, [email protected]

About Marquee Brands

Marquee Brands is a leading global brand owner and marketer. Owned by investor funds managed by Neuberger Berman, one of the world's leading employee-owned investment managers, Marquee Brands targets high quality brands with strong consumer awareness and long-term growth potential. Marquee Brands seeks to identify brands in various consumer product segments with the goal of expanding their reach across retail channel, geography and product category while preserving the brand heritage and enhancing the ultimate consumer experience. Through its global team of professionals and partners, Marquee Brands monitors trends and markets in order to grow and manage brands in partnership with retailers, licensees and manufacturers through engaging, impactful strategic planning, marketing, and e-commerce. www.marqueebrands.com

About Neuberger Berman

Neuberger Berman, founded in 1939, is a private, independent, employee-owned investment manager. The firm manages a range of strategies—including equity, fixed income, quantitative and multi-asset class, private equity and hedge funds—on behalf of institutions, advisors and individual investors globally. With offices in 23 countries, Neuberger Berman's team is more than 2,100 professionals. For five consecutive years, the company has been named first or second in Pensions & Investments Best Places to Work in Money Management survey (among those with 1,000 employees or more). Tenured, stable and long-term in focus, the firm has built a diverse team of individuals united in their commitment to delivering compelling investment results for our clients over the long term. That commitment includes active consideration of environmental, social and governance factors. The firm manages $323 billion in client assets as of March 31, 2019. For more information, please visit our website at www.nb.com.

All information is as of March 31, 2019 unless otherwise indicated and is subject to change without notice. Firm data, including employee and assets under management figures, reflects collective data for the various affiliated investment advisers that are subsidiaries of Neuberger Berman Group LLC. Firm history/timeline includes the history of all firm subsidiaries, including predecessor entities and acquisitions. 

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SOURCE Marquee Brands

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