Trilantic North America, a private equity firm, has closed on an investment in Orva, a full-service ecommerce platform specializing in the sale of footwear, apparel, accessories and home products from leading consumer brands. The investment is being made in partnership with Orva’s founding family, which will retain a meaningful equity stake and continue to run the business.
“The Orva team has continued to demonstrate their ability to nimbly adapt the company’s business model amid major disruption over the course of its nearly 70-year history and is effectively capitalizing on the retail industry’s accelerating shift toward e-commerce,” states Jamie Manges, partner at Trilantic North America. “The value Orva’s unique merchandising strategy brings to partners and customers alike is evidenced by its long-term, trusted brand relationships and the success of its high-growth platform. We look forward to working alongside the founding family to support Orva through its next phase of growth.”
Founded in 1948 as a regional chain of stores, Orva has evolved its business model in parallel to the digitization of the retail landscape. Today, the company operates as a leading e-tailer providing its longstanding brand partners with comprehensive ecommerce solutions across leading online marketplaces, including Amazon and Walmart, as well as other DTC channels.
“The Trilantic North America team’s expertise in building businesses that are harnessing shifting consumer preferences and leveraging the power of the Amazon platform makes them an ideal partner,” says Abe Shalom, president of Orva. “Our partnership will facilitate acceleration of our growth initiatives and we’re incredibly excited to see what we can accomplish together.”
Lincoln International acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Orva on the transaction. Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP provided legal advice to Trilantic North America and Orva, respectively.
