California Apparel News

Los Angeles–based sustainable women’s brand Reformation said an investment from new partner Permira will help fuel international growth.

On July 10, it was announced that London-headquartered Permira took a majority stake in the women’s collection, which focuses on dresses and denim. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Reformation co-founder Yael Aflalo will remain the brand’s chief executive officer and a significant owner. Hali Borenstein will remain Reformation’s president.

Reformation launched in 2009 as a brand that focused on producing stylish clothes while cutting waste and pollution by using dead stock and eco fabrics in its products. Its clothing is sold through its e-commerce channel, thereformation.com. A couple of years ago, it started opening a number of bricks-and-mortar stores, which now number 14 in the U.S. Last year, it began wholesaling to Nordstrom.

Permira has invested in clothing and footwear brands including Hugo Boss, Valentino, Dr. Martens, Minted, The Knot Worldwide and Allegro. “When we met with the Permira team, it was clear that they shared our commitment to sustainability and have a strong understanding of how to best navigate the complex and rapidly changing consumer market,” Aflalo said in a statement. “Their partnership allows us to expand our business domestically and internationally and launch into new product categories, taking us one step closer to our mission of bringing sustainable fashion to everyone.”

Stripes Group, another Reformation investor, will continue to be active in the brand’s business, according to a Reformation statement.

Reformation’s international growth started this week. On July 11, it opened its first store in Toronto with another location to follow this fall in London. Reformation also partnered with the e-commerce platform Global-e to develop its e-commerce platform to support more than 95 currencies and offer 50 alternative payment methods.