To expand its global portfolio, Abu Dhabi’s Multiply Group, a technology-focused investment holding company, invested $25 million in the singer Rihanna’s venture, Savage X Fenty. The company stated to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange that the investment was made by its subsidiary share-trading company, MG Wellness Holding.
“Savage X Fenty was launched in 2018 by Rihanna to celebrate fearless individuality and broaden the definition of what is beautiful. Since its inception, it has experienced a revenue compound annual growth rate of 150 percent,” Samia Bouazza, chief executive of Multiply Group, said in the statement to ADX.
At 33, Robyn Rihanna Fenty is one of the youngest celebrity billionaires. As of August last year, she was also the second-richest musician in the world. Forbes estimates her net worth at $1.7 billion, thanks in large part to her make-up and fashion empires. She earns about $70m per year, according to Celebrity Net Worth.
Multiply Group recently raised Dh3.1bn through its listing on the ADX in December to expand its global portfolio.
The company, a subsidiary of ADX-listed International Holding Company, has a “strong and promising” pipeline of potential acquisitions and it is evaluating several deals, Ms. Bouazza said in an interview earlier this month with The National.
“We have raised money, which we need to start using wisely and intelligently,” Ms. Bouazza said. “In order to fund our inorganic growth in a very bold acquisitive mode … [we need] to find good opportunities that bring both strategic values to our portfolio and financial value to our shareholders.”
Timed with the opening of Savage X Fenty’s first brick-and-mortar boutique on the Las Vegas Strip, the company announced a new Series C funding round of $125m led by investment management company Neuberger Berman, Forbes reported on Wednesday.
Previous investors L Catterton (a private equity company backed by LVMH’s Bernard Arnault), Avenir, Sunley House Capital, Advent International and Marcy Venture Partners (the VC company co-founded by Jay-Z) also participated in the Series C round. The company also received a new investment from LionTree and Abu Dhabi Growth Fund, according to Forbes.
This brings total venture capital funding to date to $310m for the intimate apparel brand. The latest funding will support the fashion company’s foray into brick-and-mortar retail, plans to expand overseas and the launch of new product lines, the Forbes report said.
Multiply Group was acquired by IHC, the biggest company on ADX by market value, in 2020. It has been on an acquisition spree, having closed six investment transactions in 2021 alone. The company’s portfolio of investments includes stakes in companies including Emirates Driving Company, Omorfia Group, Viola Communications, Firefly, and Yieldmo.
The company’s Dh275m investment in the global visual content creator and marketplace Getty Images was its last deal. It signed a binding commitment to invest in Getty as part of the company’s listing through its merger with a special purpose acquisition company, or Spac, it announced in the last week of December.
Getty is merging with CC Neuberger Principal Holdings II and the deal is expected to close in the first half of 2022, after which a newly formed parent company of Getty Images is expected to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
The group is eagerly looking at more global opportunities in all its five business verticals – ventures, digital, wellness, utilities, and communications. Their main aim is to build the growth potential that these sectors offer amidst the global economic recovery from the pandemic slowdown. Thus, the chief executive said that they are open to investment deals from all around the world, regardless of geographical boundaries.