Audience:
Open industry. All apparel and footwear industry professionals, regardless of AAFA membership, are encouraged to participate.
Description:
After slowing down during the pandemic, mergers and acquisitions activity is seeing a surge that has significant implications for the fashion and apparel industry. RSM and MMG have assembled a panel of industry insiders to discuss what’s hot in M&A and to examine emerging trends from all sides, from the perspective of private equity dealmakers, strategic acquirers, and key transactions advisors.
Attendees of this webinar will:
- Learn what it takes to do a transaction in this climate.
- Hear what strategic acquirers are looking for in an acquisition.
- Discover how private equity dealmakers are planning their investments.
Moderator:
Carol Lapidus
National Consumer Products Leader
RSM US LLP
Carol Lapidus is a partner at RSM US LLP, based in the New York office, and is the firm’s national leader of the consumer products industry practice. She has served clients as an accountant and consultant for over 30 years. Carol leads the consumer products practice, working with internal teams to optimize growth and client service, as well as externally, meeting with clients, prospects and influencers, sharing RSM’s expertise in the consumer products industry.
Speakers:
Allan Ellinger
Founder and Senior Managing Partner
MMG Advisors
Allan Ellinger is the Founder and Senior Managing Partner of MMG Advisors, the leading investment bank for middle-market consumer product, retail, and fashion companies. Having started his career in the men’s apparel industry, Allan draws on more than 40 years of diverse industry experience in M&A, restructuring and crisis management to lead the firm. He also serves as a strategic adviser to numerous owners and CEOs of fashion and consumer products companies.
Jill Granoff
CEO
Eurazeo Brands
Jill Granoff has a distinguished 30-year career as a strategist and brand builder in the retail, fashion and beauty industries. She is currently CEO of Eurazeo Brands, an $800 million investment division of Eurazeo S.E., which is a listed European private equity firm with $20 billion in assets under management. Her mission is to invest in differentiated, high growth consumer and retail brands in beauty, fashion, wellness, home, food & beverage, and leisure.
Kunal Bhatt
Transaction Advisory Partner
RSM US LLP
Kunal Bhatt is a transaction advisory partner at RSM with an industry specialization in consumer products. Kunal’s transaction advisory experience includes financial and operational due diligence, quality of earnings analyses, working capital adjustments and target calculations, and carve-out transactions. He has successfully completed due diligence on fashion, beauty and home companies with transaction sizes ranging from $5 million to $1.5 billion.
Charles Komar
President and CEO
Komar, Inc.
Charlie Komar is President and CEO of Komar, Inc., an industry leader across a diverse range of retail categories that specialize in the design, marketing, sourcing and distribution of sleepwear, intimates, kids and layering brands. Mr. Komar is a former board member and executive committee member of the American Apparel Footwear Association. He is currently a board member of Amboy Bank in Old Bridge, NJ, and the Riverview Medical Foundation in Red Bank, NJ. He is on the business advisory board of the Boys & Girl’s Club of Monmouth County and the JDRF Research Fund.
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Introduction by:
Susan Lapetina
Senior Vice President, Education and Corporate Marketing
AAFA
Susan Lapetina leads AAFA’s education, programming, and special events initiatives. An experienced executive in meetings, events, marketing, and strategic planning, she directs the association’s signature events, the Executive Summit, Hong Kong Summit, American Image Awards, as well as AAFA’s Board meetings. Susan launched AAFA’s international training conference series throughout Asia and built its webinar platform. Spearheading AAFA’s Elite sponsor program, Susan works closely with supplier members to bring them visibility and recognition among association members. Before joining AAFA in 1999, she was Principal of Marketing Evolutions, a strategic planning services firm focused on associations and nonprofits. She also served as the Director of Marketing at the International Association of Fire Chiefs and the American Society of Landscape Architects. A graduate of Canisius College, Susan is originally from upstate New York.