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Authentic Brands Group could be a public company within the next 18 months, CEO Jamie Salter said at the ICR Conference being held in Orlando.

Why it matters: While still shaky, the IPO market is expected to rebound this year.

Details: Temasek and QIA quietly invested in Authentic at the end of 2023 at an $18 billion valuation, the CEO said, which had not previously been announced.

"At some point we have to go public," Salter said during a presentation at the conference.

Yes, but: Salter noted the company has filed to go public twice before — and was taken over twice instead.

Alternatively the company could end up getting acquired by Disney or Amazon.

Even Authentic licensing partner Shein could be a buyer if the fast fashion giant goes public successfully, Salter said — reiterating what he told Axios in October. 

Zoom in: The brand management firm's acquisition strategy of acquiring brands' intellectual property, including Reebok, has propelled Authentic to be one of the largest apparel companies in the world.

"We are hungry for large deals," Salter said during his presentation, noting these are defined as transactions valued between $2 billion and $3 billion.

By the numbers: Authentic is generating nearly $30 billion in sales at retail globally, Salter said.

It also generated $1.17 billion in EBITDA in 2023 compared to the $800 million it generated in 2022, Salter said at the conference. 

The $1.17 billion in EBITDA constitutes 78% of the company's $1.5 billion in revenue, which is essentially royalties.

Plus, Authentic has $3 billion in debt on its balance sheet.

What's next: Authentic could triple its EBITDA on Authentic.com, a website it quietly launched in November, Salter says.

Typically Authentic collects a royalty rate of about 5% of revenue, but on its new website, the royalty rate increases to 15%.

Authentic Brands Group could go public within 18 months

It increased EBITDA to nearly $1.2 billion in 2023, versus about $800 million in 2022.

Illustration of an infinite stack of Wall St. bulls.

Initial public offerings (IPO)

Authentic Brands Group could be a public company within the next 18 months, CEO Jamie Salter said at the ICR Conference being held in Orlando.Why it matters: While still shaky, the IPO market is expected to <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="rebound" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/12/01/panera-2024-ipo-brigade" data-vars-content-id="5559dcf8-6c49-4a34-8931-060082d690d3" data-vars-headline="Authentic Brands Group could go public within 18 months" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/12/01/panera-2024-ipo-brigade" target="_self">rebound</a> this year.

Authentic Brands Group could go public within 18 months

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