We recently connected with Shawne Jacobs and have shared our conversation below.
Shawne , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. If you’re open to it, can you talk to us about the best (or worst) investment you’ve made. What’s the backstory and the relevant context behind why you made the investment
The decision to purchase Anne Barge has ended up being the best investment that we have made thus far. Prior to purchasing the company, my husband and I explored the possibility of starting our own bridal design company. After working with Anne Barge for 12 years and with my husband’s experience owning other companies, we knew that we wanted to own a business in the bridal industry. When the opportunity presented itself to potentially purchase Anne Barge, we had to weigh the benefits of purchasing an established brand versus starting a new line from scratch. Thankfully, we recognized the value of purchasing a brand that was already respected in the industry. We are grateful to have the opportunity to continue the legacy of the Anne Barge brand and continue to explore new ways to grow the business. Our newest venture in that regard is the opening of our second flagship store on Madison Avenue in New York. Each of these new investments stem from the initial decision to purchase Anne Barge 8 years ago.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
After graduating from college at the American Intercontinental University in Atlanta, GA, I began my career at Anne Barge in 2002 in the shipping and receiving department. I learned every aspect of the bridal business and strengthened my design skills under the tutelage of the company’s namesake, Anne Barge. I currently serve as the Designer of Anne Barge and President of its parent company, S. Jacobs, Inc. My duties include leading the design, marketing, and business development of the bridal lines: Anne Barge, Blue Willow Bride by Anne Barge, Little White Dress, and Curve Couture, as well as its eveningwear line, Anne Barge Black Label.
I am always trying to continue to evolve the brand aesthetic of “modern classical” with new fabrics, details, and silhouettes. Each gown is created to make a woman feel confident and beautiful.
We are proud of the continued growth and sales each year since the purchase of the company. Each year we have achieved record sales–excluding 2020 which sales were understandably impacted.
Let’s talk M&A – we’d love to hear your about your experience with buying businesses
After working as an employee of Anne Barge Inc. for 12 years, my husband and I purchased the business in 2014. The previous owner was approaching retirement and we began a conversation about how we might meet both of our needs through an acquisition. Anne Barge Inc, is a brand that designs bridal and eveningwear gowns. My design experience within the company gave both of us confidence that a transition would be possible with minimal interruption of the business. Structurally we settled on an asset purchase with 25% payment upon closing and the balance paid over a five-year term. This structure enabled the seller to receive enough money up front to justify the sale while also helping us, the purchasers, spread out the payment.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
As a company that manufacturers our product overseas involving multiple countries along our supply chain, the pandemic has created different challenges at each stage. Initially the closure of our main factory in China, lead to a minor delay in the receipt of finished bridal gowns. Fortunately, we had enough extra lead time to ships these gowns on time to the bridal retailers we sell to. Once the pandemic reached our shores and the bridal boutiques we sell to began to close, the challenges shifted from production issues to demand issues since our stores weren’t able to accept previously ordered gowns or take new orders. As the country gradually reopened, there was definitely a pent-up demand for bridal gowns. When the Delta variant began to spread, our factory in Vietnam closed for 2 months. This disruption in our production was much more impactful than the previous closure earlier in the pandemic. Because of the extended closure we had to shift some of our production to our other factories in order to meet our delivery dates. Fortunately, things are beginning to return to normal capacity. These challenges have demonstrated how we hope to improve our supply chain in the future.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.annebarge.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annebarge/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AnneBargeBride
- Other: Pinterest – @annebargebride
Image Credits
Laura Gordon Stephanie Diani