Sundial signs strategic partnership agreement with Bain Capital
Sundial Brands CEO Rich Dennis in DSN’s New General Market video
NEW YORK — Natural skin and hair care manufacturer Sundial Brands on Wednesday announced that it signed an agreement into a strategic partnership with Bain Capital Private Equity.
The partnership will drive Sundial's social entrepreneurship model, accelerate its multi-brand portfolio strategy, and advance its transformative approach to serving New General Market consumers, the company said. Financial terms of the minority investment were not disclosed.
“Sundial is now in the strongest position to continue to lead this beauty revolution, alongside all of our consumers, so that no one gets left behind,” Sundial Founder and CEO Richelieu Dennis said.
Dennis will continue in his roles at the company. The brand, which introduced the New General Market concept to beauty and retail, will remain majority family-owned.
“We are strategically aligned with our new partner around the elevation of the New General Market as a key growth driver and the opportunity to identify and invest in new ways to better serve our consumer community,” Dennis said. “We have defined the New General Market as ‘an amalgamation of cultures, ethnicities and demographics aligned against commonalities, need states and lifestyles.’”
Sundial has targeted underserved consumers, including African-American women.
“We recognize that African-American women have long been at the forefront of the natural hair and body movement that has created the dynamic cultural shift that we see today,” Dennis said. “It is exciting for us to see how naturalistas have now empowered women from all backgrounds to embrace their natural beauty. In addition, they have compelled multinational beauty brands and retailers to acknowledge and be more respectful of their needs.”
Deval Patrick, a managing director at Bain Capital and the former governor of Massachusetts, participated in partnership discussions and will join Sundial’s board of directors, the company said.