Investment funds managed by J.W. Childs Associates, L.P. has announced the recent closing of an investment in a newly formed holding company, Comoto Holdings, Inc., dedicated to motorcycle enthusiasts alongside the founders and equity holders of RevZilla Motorsports, LLC. Comoto Holdings will have equity investments in both RevZilla and Cycle Gear, Inc., two of the nation’s leading retailers of apparel, accessories and parts for motorcycle enthusiasts. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
RevZilla and Cycle Gear will continue to operate as independent sister companies with headquarters in Philadelphia and Benicia, CA, respectively. Joseph M. Fortunato, former CEO and Chairman of GNC, will be Executive Chairman of the new company. Mr. Fortunato commented, “I’m extremely excited to work with Cycle Gear and RevZilla, two of the industry’s leading companies, both led by fantastic management teams, to accelerate their growth. We will leverage each team’s respective consumer insights and complementary skills in delivering a best-in-class experience to the motorcycle enthusiast.”
Mr. Fortunato will serve on the Board of Directors of Comoto Holdings as Executive Chairman, alongside several executives from J.W. Childs and two of the RevZilla founders, Anthony Bucci, CEO, and Matt Kull, COO. Mr. Bucci, Mr. Kull, and RevZilla founder Nick Auger will maintain their current executive positions along with the management team at Cycle Gear.
“Matt, Nick and I are thrilled about our new ownership in Comoto and the opportunity to complement our digital leadership and expertise with the seasoned leadership and retail acumen that Joe and J.W. Childs possess,” said Anthony Bucci. “Moving forward, RevZilla will only accelerate its ability to advance the experience of motorcycle enthusiasts in new and expansive ways.”
“Cycle Gear and RevZilla are leaders in the motorsports industry through their brick and mortar and digital expertise, respectively, and the opportunity for J.W. Childs to participate in both markets as each improves the community interaction and shopping experience for their enthusiast customers is an exciting endeavor,” said Jeff Teschke, Partner of J.W. Childs. “The investment is a great fit with our strategy of investing in leading specialty retailers and consumer brands and we look forward to participating in this next phase of growth at both Cycle Gear and RevZilla.”
