Kim Kardashian, you have probably heard of. Jay Sammons, unless you are a PE aficionado, probably not.
But it’s the latter, rather than the former, who is most likely to play the key role in the success of their new PE firm, SKKY Partners.
Sammons, according to The Guardian, “spent 16 years at Carlyle as head of its consumer, media and retail division, where he made lucrative investments in big brands including the headphones company Beats by Dre, which was founded by the rapper and producer Dr Dre.”
So, he knows his stuff.
On his LinkedIn page, the former Global Head of Consumer, Media & Retail at Carlyle and Harvard Business School MBA, details identifying “consumer-focused companies that not only had scale, but the opportunity for value creation, revenue growth and market share gains,” as a one of his major strengths.
Kardashian obviously feels she has made a shrewd strategic alliance, recently Tweeting: “Together we hope to leverage our complementary expertise to build the next generation consumer and media private equity firm,” to her 70 million followers.
And, although some snooty Wall Street types will inevitably sneer, the TV star already has a standout track-record in building brands. As Forbes points out: “We estimate Kardashian is worth $1.8 billion thanks largely to her stakes in her companies KKW Beauty and Skims.”
The “Keeping Up…” celebrity joins other big names like Leonardo DiCaprio, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Serena Williams, who have also got involved in private equity investment.
Unsurprisingly, given her naturally competitive DNA, Williams has led the way.
CNBC say her venture capital firm Serena Ventures has “invested in over 50 companies worth a total of more than $14 billion since it was founded in 2014. This includes online learning platform MasterClass and social audio app Clubhouse.”
Like the tennis player, Kardashian has consistently confounded her doubters.
And, with the experienced Sammons by her side, how long will it be before SKKY’s dynamic duo spot the next Beats by Dre?