Jill Maier, the president of Brooks Brothers subsidiary Carolee, will oversee the brand

Brooks Brothers Group Inc., through its subsidiary Carolee, has acquired Alexis Bittar, the Brooklyn, N.Y.–based jewelry brand.

The sale was first reported by WWD. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The company was formerly owned by Alexis Bittar and the investment firm TSG Consumer Partners, which took a 50 percent investment stake in the brand in 2012.

Jill Maier, president of Carolee, which Brooks Brothers acquired in 2001 and which develops and markets licensed jewelry for Lauren by Ralph Lauren, ABS by Allen Schwartz, Trina Turk, and Brooks Brothers, will oversee the brand.

“We are truly proud to add Alexis Bittar jewelry to our brand portfolio,” Maier told WWD. “Its creativity, independent design, exceptional quality and craftsmanship complement our brand offering and enable us to strategically evolve our business model.”

Matteo Del Vecchio, chief administrative officer for Brooks Brothers, told WWD that the company has no immediate plans to add Alexis Bittar jewelry to Brooks Brothers stores.

“Our strategy is to maintain a fully owned but independent jewelry division, housing both owned [Carolee, Alexis Bittar] and licensed brands,” he said. “[Putting the jewelry in stores] was not the reason for the acquisition or part of our current strategy, but something which could be potentially explored in the future.”

JCK reached out to representatives from Alexis Bittar but had not heard back by press time.

(Photo courtesy of Alexis Bittar) 

JCK