IVEST Consumer Partners and Cloverlay today announced the sale of Care Bears to Authentic Brands Group, a leading global sports, media, entertainment and lifestyle platform that owns some of the world’s most iconic and beloved intellectual property. Authentic’s brands generate more than $36 billion in annual systemwide retail sales worldwide.
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IVEST and Cloverlay acquired Care Bears in 2023 from the Weiss family, sole owners of the brand for more than 40 years. IVEST and Cloverlay were selected as stewards of the brand with a mandate to unlock the commercial potential of one of the world’s most recognized and enduring character properties.
Under Cloverlay and IVEST’s ownership and operational leadership, Care Bears increased its revenue by 4x and is on track to exceed $750 million in retail sales by year-end 2026. Care Bears has now generated more than $12 billion in retail sales since its inception.
Global brand awareness of Care Bears has increased dramatically under IVEST’s and Cloverlay’s stewardship, reaching 85% and ranking the brand second globally among its peer group for brand awareness. This growth has been accompanied by a significant expansion of the brand’s licensing and retail presence across new categories, markets and channels. Care Bears consumer products and content are now distributed in more than 190 territories worldwide. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. As relevant market context, Peanuts, a highly comparable evergreen character brand, was sold in December 2025 for C$630 million, representing approximately 23x EBITDA.
“Care Bears had extraordinary cultural equity that had been fundamentally undercommercialized for decades. We transformed it from a children’s entertainment business into a consumer products licensing company — a fundamentally different orientation that changes how you prioritize, invest and measure success. That required building marketing and product category planning from the ground up, upgrading the company’s systems, modernizing its social media and marketing strategy and resources, and shifting from a predominantly US focus to a genuinely global growth agenda. The outcome validates IVEST’s thesis: that acquiring and scaling undervalued intellectual property, paired with world-class operators, generates exceptional returns. IVEST intends to continue pursuing this strategy by identifying, investing in and scaling additional iconic brands where our playbook can create substantial value. We are proud of what the Care Bears team built, and we look forward to seeing Authentic carry it into its next chapter.”
— Mark Matheny, Chair of Care Bears and Operating Partner, IVEST Consumer Partners and Aston Loch, Co-Founding Partner, IVEST Consumer Partners
“Cloverlay’s strategy is to identify assets that fall outside of traditional private equity allocations and behave in uncorrelated ways. We viewed Care Bears as an intangible and misunderstood intellectual property asset with asymmetric upside potential, and through the remarkable work and deep experience of IVEST we have been able to realize this opportunity for our investors. Since 2023 we have seen tremendous growth in Care Bears’ retail presence and its position as a leading global entertainment property. We are pleased to entrust this beloved family brand to Authentic, who are well-positioned to unlock the next era of the Care Bears’ legacy.”
— Jeff Collins, Managing Partner, Cloverlay
The sale of Care Bears is expected to close in the third quarter of 2026. The Raine Group served as exclusive financial advisor to Those Characters From Cleveland, LLC (dba CloudCo Entertainment) on this transaction.
The Raine Group served as exclusive financial advisor to Those Characters From Cleveland, LLC (dba CloudCo Entertainment) on this transaction.
About IVEST Consumer Partners
IVEST is a private equity sponsor focused on licensing, intellectual property and consumer products, with a team of world-class operators whose global experience includes helping build Warner Bros. into the licensing powerhouse it is today. For more information, visit Ivestconsumer.com.
About Cloverlay
Cloverlay is an independent asset manager specializing in Adjacent Private Markets – niche strategies overlooked by traditional private equity, private credit, and real asset programs. The firm’s investment approach focuses on unlocking the fundamental value of tangible and intangible assets in opaque and inefficient market segments, offering investors a unique entry point into untapped opportunities. As of December 31, 2024, Cloverlay has raised approximately $1.8 billion. For more information, visit Cloverlay.com.
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