Prime Highlights-
- KKR bought Ci Flavors from shareholders including L Catterton, eBeauty Group, and Yanagi Capital Partners.
- The deal supports KKR’s Asia-Pacific private equity strategy and consumer investment track record.
Key Facts-
- Simpson Thacher advised KKR on its acquisition of Japanese beauty brand Ci Flavors.
- Founder Yusaku Horiuchi and CEO Yoshiaki Okura will invest alongside KKR in the deal.
Background-
KKR has picked up Ci Flavors, a Japanese beauty and lifestyle brand platform, with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett handling the legal side. The purchase price wasn’t shared.
The law firm said KKR is taking over the company from its current owners — founder Yusaku Horiuchi, plus L Catterton, eBeauty Group, and Yanagi Capital Partners.
Going forward, Horiuchi will keep a stake in the business, and so will Ci Flavors’ CEO, Yoshiaki Okura, both investing alongside KKR after the deal closes.
On the legal team, Simpson Thacher brought in partners Jonathan Stradling and Étienne Renaudeau, plus Makiko Harunari, who heads the firm’s Asia banking and credit work, and George Wang, who runs both the international trade regulatory group and Asia litigation practice.
Rounding out the team were senior counsel Meredith Jones, counsel Atsushi Usui, and a group of associates: Daisuke Ueta, Cathleen Ye, Minjung Park, Zhendong Xu, Mark Watson, Giovanna De Cristofaro, Max Toubiana, Shuhao Fan, and Xue Feng.
KKR, Ci Flavors, and L Catterton issued a joint statement calling the deal part of KKR’s larger Asia-Pacific investment plan. They pointed to KKR’s history of backing consumer brands worldwide as proof the fit makes sense.
This purchase adds to KKR’s growing footprint in Asia’s consumer market, continuing its habit of investing in well-known brands that already have a strong local base and room to grow internationally.
