LAVCA VC
  • News Feed
  • VC Data
  • Directories
  • Features
  • Tech Growth Coalition
  • LAVCA Gender Diversity
  • Engage
    • VC Council
    • VC Members
  • LAVCA
  • Member Login
  • Member Access

LAVCA VC

  • News Feed
  • VC Data
  • Directories
  • Features
  • Tech Growth Coalition
  • LAVCA Gender Diversity
  • Engage
    • VC Council
    • VC Members
  • LAVCA

BlackRock Invests in Grupo Axo

May 18, 2021

BlackRock has made an undisclosed investment in Grupo Axo, a Mexico-based multi-brand retail platform backed by General Atlantic. General Atlantic invested in the multi-brand retailer in 2017.

(Press Release) Grupo Axo, a leading Latin American multi-brand retail platform and partner to global fashion brands, today announced an equity investment from funds and accounts managed by BlackRock. Grupo Axo will leverage the new funds to continue its expansion across Latin America as a premier brand steward and operator, with a particular focus on continuing the expansion of its digital channels. The funds and accounts managed by BlackRock join Grupo Axo’s global investor base, including existing shareholder General Atlantic.

Grupo Axo’s differentiated platform encompasses a diversified brand ecosystem underpinned by nearly three decades of experience as a multichannel operator and distributor of internationally-recognized brands, including Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, and Victoria’s Secret, among others. Grupo Axo holds licenses and exclusive distribution rights to a broad portfolio of 20 global brands, nine owned brands, and one non-exclusive partnership with Nike in Mexico. The business operates across four business divisions, spanning Full-Price, Off-Price, Athletics, and Privalia, a subscription based, off-price online marketplace. This multichannel platform provides Grupo Axo with the unique opportunity for control across the full spectrum of the product lifecycle, from merchandising at the beginning of a season through end-of-season discounting. Grupo Axo’s portfolio has also been specifically curated to anticipate and respond to the fashion and price-point preferences of different market segments.

Grupo Axo’s investments in its digital channels meaningfully accelerated the growth of the business over the past year despite a downturn in the broader retail sector as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The company’s digital channel grew 8.5x in 2020, with digital sales representing 31% of Grupo Axo’s consolidated sales in 1Q21. Grupo Axo’s momentum is also supported by recent key strategic acquisitions, including Tennix S.A. de C.V., which operates TAF stores in Mexico, in 2018, and Privalia’s Latin America online platform (ex-Brazil), in 2019.

Andres Gomez, co-CEO at Grupo Axo, said: “We are honored to welcome funds and accounts managed by BlackRock to our investor base as we focus on the sustained growth of the business in Latin America and across channels. Over the past year, the acceleration of our digital offering, combined with our omnichannel strategy, has consolidated Grupo Axo’s position as a key e-commerce fashion player in the region. We are energized by the potential for Grupo Axo to continue strengthening our expertise and footprint as the partner of choice for global brands operating in Latin America.”

Russ Steenberg, Managing Director and Global Head of BlackRock Private Equity Partners, added, “Grupo Axo is strongly positioned as a premium brand steward and brings expertise in the retail ecosystem across Mexico and Latin America. We believe the business has significant whitespace to scale and capture additional opportunity across retail channels and segments. We are pleased to join a high-quality investor group and look forward to partnering with Andres, Alberto, and the highly experienced Grupo Axo management team to fuel the continued growth of the business.”

Luis Cervantes, General Atlantic Managing Director, Head of the Mexico City Office, and Grupo Axo Board Director, added, “Over the nearly four years of our partnership together, Grupo Axo has remained intently focused on the growth of its business, seeking to provide a seamless shopping experience across all online and offline channels, and leveraging its integrated model to support each brand’s specific needs. We look forward to our continued partnership with the Grupo Axo team, and are thrilled to welcome funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, as we focus on further deepening the company’s differentiated digital capability set and omnichannel platform.”

At the same time as the closing of the investment by funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Grupo Axo will separately ratify Andres Gomez as Chairman of the Board and CEO, and Alberto Fasja will be confirmed as Board Member and strategic member of the company. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.

About Grupo Axo
Grupo Axo is a Latin American premier partner to global fashion brands. Founded in Mexico in 1994, Grupo Axo leverages more than 26 years of experience in brand stewardship across the retail, wholesale, and e-commerce channels to serve as a multi-brand operator and distributor for its leading global client base, including Abercrombie & Fitch, Bath & Body Works, Brooks Brothers, Brunello Cucinelli, Calvin Klein, Coach, Crate and Barrel, Guess, Hollister, IZOD, Laces, Lust, NIKE, PVH Heritage Brands, Rapsodia, Speedo, TAF, Tommy Hilfiger, TAF Kids, Victoria´s Secret, and Warner’s. Grupo Axo operates more than 5,500 retail and wholesale points of sale across Latin America. The company also owns and operates Promoda, a leading Mexican off-price retailer, and Privalia, an off-price multi-brand e-commerce retailer, as well as Reduced, Rewind, and Urban Store, additional off-price store concepts.

About BlackRock Private Equity Partners
As private equity moves from alternative to essential, investors are seeking to build specific private equity portfolios catering to their individual needs. BlackRock has a history of leading the evolution of our industry to better serve our clients and has built a private equity platform that continues in that tradition. Our strategies span the private equity toolkit, offering investors exposure through direct, primary, secondary and co-investment strategies and draw on a common set of institutional advantages—our global scale and sourcing network, investment transaction experience and access to insights amplified with analytics and technology—to deliver top quartile performance through an entire investment cycle. On behalf of, and in partnership with our clients, BlackRock builds diversified portfolios of investments across the spectrum of private equity, including leveraged buyouts, venture capital, growth equity and distressed/opportunistic strategies.

BlackRock Private Equity Partners has over 160 dedicated professionals in 5 global offices and manages US$38.5 billion in client commitments as of March 31, 2021.

About General Atlantic
General Atlantic is a leading global growth equity firm providing capital and strategic support for growth companies. Established in 1980, General Atlantic combines a collaborative global approach, sector specific expertise, a long-term investment horizon and a deep understanding of growth drivers to partner with great entrepreneurs and management teams to build market-leading businesses worldwide. General Atlantic has more than 175 investment professionals based in New York, Amsterdam, Beijing, Greenwich, Hong Kong, Jakarta, London, Mexico City, Mumbai, Munich, Palo Alto, São Paulo, Shanghai and Singapore. For more information on General Atlantic, please visit the website: www.generalatlantic.com.

BlackRock Invests in Grupo Axo was last modified: June 1st, 2021 by csantos
Alberto FasjaAndres GomezCalvin Kleindigital channelsLuis CervantesNikeomnichannel strategyPrivate EquityRuss SteenbergTommy HilfigerVictoria’s Secret
0
Facebook Twitter Google +

Sign up for LAVCA’s bi-weekly Latin American Private Capital Update and the LatAm Venture Bulletin, produced specifically for venture investors, entrepreneurs, and technology startups in the early stage ecosystem.






Which LAVCA Newsletter would you like to receive?

VC Partner Events

    Tweets

    • "According to LAVCA Data, VC investment into Latin American fintech totaled USD1.2b in the first quarter of 2022."… https://t.co/oikd3BXiCU

      24-Jun-2022

      Reply Retweet Favorite
    • Felicitaciones a la Directora Ejecutiva de LAVCA @lavca_org Ángela María Tafur @naitafur quien se ha incorporado al… https://t.co/qjHgnmFPS3

      14-Jun-2022

      Reply Retweet Favorite
    • LAVCA's Director of Venture Capital @crdelavega_ shares insights with @TechCrunch's @bayareawriter on the latest d… https://t.co/krypDTI5NE

      14-Jun-2022

      Reply Retweet Favorite
    • Congratulations to LAVCA's Executive Director @naitafur who has joined the Board of Directors of @GRUPOSURA. https://t.co/47bv5fyVhT

      13-Jun-2022

      Reply Retweet Favorite
    • In 2018, @_AquaCapital invested in agricultural biologicals platform @Biotropbr. In 3 years, the company has reduce… https://t.co/PDu5zkchTs

      13-Jun-2022

      Reply Retweet Favorite

    Submit VC News

    Have private equity or venture capital related news that you would like to share? Submit your press releases and news to [email protected].

    VC Industry News

    • Ecuadorian Fintech Kushki Raises USD100m Series B+ at USD1.5b Valuation

      June 7, 2022
    • Vinci Partners Acquires USD20m Stake in Brazilian Credit Provider DMCard

      February 21, 2022
    • 8VC Leads ~USD35.4m Round for Brazilian Insurtech 180 Seguros (em português)

      February 2, 2022
    • Glade Brook Capital Leads USD125m Series C for Chilean Insurtech Betterfly

      February 2, 2022
    • SP Ventures and Acre.VC Lead USD10m Series A for Brazilian Carbon Trading Marketplace Moss (em português)

      January 31, 2022
    • Brazilian Healthtech Nilo Saúde Raises USD10m Series A from Canary, MAYA, SoftBank, GFC and Tau Ventures

      January 28, 2022
    • Valor Capital Group Leads ~USD16m Series A for Brazilian Agtech Agrolend (em português)

      January 23, 2022
    • DILA Capital and Kayyak Ventures Lead USD15m Series A for Mexican Financing Platform Fairplay

      January 18, 2022
    • Astella Investimentos Leads ~USD4.6m Seed Round for Brazilian Blockchain Trading Platform Gavea (em português)

      January 12, 2022
    • SoftBank Leads USD48m Series B for Colombian E-commerce Laika

      January 12, 2022
    • KASZEK Leads USD13.2m Round for Mexican Fantasy Sports Platform Draftea

      January 7, 2022
    • IDC Ventures Leads ~USD5m Series A for Brazilian Microcredit Platform SuperSim (em português)

      January 6, 2022
    • Mexican Verification Platform MetaMap Raises USD70m Series B

      January 5, 2022
    • DRADS Capital Leads USD7m Pre-Series A for Chilean Foodtech The Live Green Co. (en español)

      January 3, 2022
    • SoftBank Leads USD127m Round for Brazilian Healthcare Provider Alice

      December 21, 2021
    • DILA Capital and ALIVE Ventures Lead USD14m Series A for Edtech Slang

      December 20, 2021
    • Astella Investimentos and SoftBank Lead ~USD3m Seed Round for Brazilian Automation Platform BotCity (em português)

      December 20, 2021
    • GIC Leads USD80m Round for Colombian POS Lending Platform ADDI (em português)

      December 20, 2021
    • Yara Growth Ventures Leads USD30m Series C for Argentine Agtech Agrofy (em português)

      December 16, 2021
    • Tiger Global Leads USD60m Series B for Mexican Freight Platform Nowports

      December 16, 2021
    • SoftBank Leads ~USD120m Round for Brazilian Fintech OpenCo (em português)

      December 15, 2021
    • DN Capital Leads ~USD22.2m Series A+ for Brazilian Healthtech Sami

      December 14, 2021
    • Riverwood Capital Leads ~USD52m Series B for Brazilian Fiscal Management Platform Arquivei (em português)

      December 14, 2021
    • KASZEK Leads USD2.7m Seed Round for Peruvian Edtech Crack the Code

      December 13, 2021
    • GIC Leads ~USD32m Series C for Brazilian Delivery Platform Shopper (em português)

      December 13, 2021
    • Tiger Global Leads USD20.5m Round for Mexican Freight Platform Nuvocargo

      December 10, 2021
    • Advent International and SoftBank Lead USD60m Series B+ in E-Commerce Aggregator Merama

      December 9, 2021
    • Volpe Capital Leads ~USD5m Series A for Brazilian Corporate Governance Platform Atlas Governance

      December 8, 2021
    • Lachy Groom Leads USD14.8m Series A for Brazilian Fintech Stark Bank (em português)

      December 8, 2021
    • Prosus Ventures Leads USD60m Series B for Colombian Edtech Platzi

      December 6, 2021
    • KASZEK Leads USD10m Series A for Brazilian Workspace Marketplace Beer or Coffee (em português)

      November 30, 2021
    • Galapagos Capital Invests ~USD20m in Brazilian Cosmetics MedBeauty (em português)

      November 18, 2021
    • Oak HC Leads USD27m Series A for Mexican Payment Platform Aplazo

      November 15, 2021
    • Colombian E-commerce Fulfillment Platform Melonn Raises USD4.5 Seed Round

      November 3, 2021
    • DNA Capital, Temasek and Fit Participações Lead ~USD20m Round for Brazilian Healthtech Memed

      November 1, 2021
    • Astella Investimentos Leads ~USD5m Round for Brazilian Proptech Homelend (em português)

      October 28, 2021
    • KASZEK Leads USD8m Round for Brazilian Car Documentation Platform Gringo

      October 27, 2021
    • SoftBank Leads USD75m Series C for Brazilian BPO Platform Pipefy

      October 26, 2021
    • Mexican Delivery Platform Skydropx Raised USD20m Seres A from Cometa, Base10 Partners, 645 Ventures

      October 26, 2021
    • Brazilian Car Insurtech Justos Raises ~USD35.8m Series A from SoftBank, KASZEK and Others

      October 25, 2021
    • Andreessen Horowitz and Base Partners Lead USD15m Series A for Colombian Foodtech Foodology

      October 22, 2021
    • Unbox Capital Leads USD30m Series B for Brazilian Marketing Platform Rock Content (em português)

      October 22, 2021
    • L Catterton Leads Investment in Mexican DTC Eyewear Brand Ben & Frank

      October 21, 2021
    • Anthos Capital Leads USD18m Series A for Venezuelan Delivery Platform Yummy

      October 21, 2021
    • Flourish Ventures and GFC Lead USD10m Series A for Brazilian Wholesale Marketplace Merce do Bairro

      October 21, 2021
    • Tiger Global Leads USD35m Series A for Argentine Fintech Pomelo

      October 21, 2021
    • Brazilian Wholesale Marketplace Inventa Raises ~USD6m Seed Round (em português)

      October 20, 2021
    • QED Investors and KASZEK Lead USD40m Series C for Brazilian Fintech Hash

      October 20, 2021
    • SoftBank, Amazon and Accel Lead USD108m Series B for Brazilian Fintech Pismo (en español)

      October 19, 2021
    • SP Ventures and Astella Investimentos Lead USD17m Series A for Brazilian Fintech Traive (em português)

      October 18, 2021
    • Tencent and SoftBank Lead USD200m Series F for Brazilian Trucking Marketplace CargoX (em português)

      October 15, 2021
    • Valor Capital Group Leads USD22m Series A for Mexican Edtech Aprende Institute

      October 11, 2021
    • Square Capital and Hard Yaka Invest USD15m in Colombian Digital Payments Platform Movii (en español)

      October 6, 2021

    About LAVCA

     

    LAVCA is the Association for Private Capital Investment in Latin America, a not-for-profit membership organization dedicated to supporting the growth of private capital in Latin America and the Caribbean through research, education, networking and advocacy.

    LAVCA Office

        New York City:
        589 8th Ave, 18th Floor
        New York, NY 10018

    Explore LAVCA.org

    • About LAVCA
    • Board, Team, & Advisors
    • Media
    • Contact Us
    • Membership Benefits
    • Members Only Access
    • Education and Programs
    • Research
    • Policy
    • LAVCA VC
    • Contact Us

    @2020 - LAVCA. All Rights Reserved.


    Back To Top