Hugh Hefner's youngest son is offering to buy back the Playboy brand for $100 million, according to reports.
Cooper Hefner, 33, told the Wall Street Journal He and a group of investors have reportedly submitted an offer to Playboy Group to bring the brand back into the family, more than 70 years after it was founded by his late father.
“Other than my personal connection, it's a great American company and a great American brand,” said Hefner, whose mother is Kimberly Conrad, a former Playmate and Hugh Hefner's second wife. he told the Journal.
Hefner lamented the fact that the company is “managed to the point of potentially non-existence.”
As part of the proposed deal, Mr. Hefner and his investment firm, Hefner Capital, would buy back the Playboy brand and control its intellectual property, while other parts of the business would become separate businesses under a new name. It will continue to operate as a body.
The new company will also take a 10% ownership interest in Playboy, which is run by Hefner.
Hefner, whose investor group includes hedge funds and is one of Playboy's former licensing partners, told the Journal that he will assume the role of CEO.
Playboy Group stock reached $50 per share in spring 2021, but was trading at less than $1 per share on Monday. Its market valuation was approximately $50 million.
It went public in 2021 through a special acquisition company. However, the company continues to be in the red and currently has more than $200 million in debt.
The previous year, the company had stopped publishing the magazine, ending a nearly 70-year run on newsstands that began with its debut issue featuring Marilyn Monroe in 1953.
Hugh Hefner started the magazine and built the brand. In the 1970s, Playboy had a monthly circulation of 7 million copies.
However, in the 1980s, Playboy ran into trouble due to competition from magazines such as Penthouse and Hustler, which published more explicit photographs, and Playboy's social influence had declined significantly by the 21st century.
Declining advertising revenues and the easy availability of pornography on the Internet made Playboy obsolete.
Hugh Hefner passed away in 2017 at the age of 91. He left behind four children, including Cooper Hefner, all of whom sold their shares in the company.
Cooper Hefner told the Journal that the brand was mismanaged.
“Playboy is entering a business that it has never operated before,” he said, adding that the product “just doesn't resonate with consumers, customers or fans.”
“And the decline of business and brand relevance is a direct reflection of that in that it's rarely talked about today.”
