Asian private equity (PE) firm ZWC Partners on Thursday announced its investment in IICOMBINED Co Ltd, the South Korean owner and operator of designer eyewear brand Gentle Monster, to accelerate its expansion across the Asia-Pacific region and globally.
ZWC Partners, which manages $2.5 billion in assets, plans to support IICOMBINED in its continued innovation across fashion and technology, while further strengthening its brand influence internationally, the PE firm announced in a statement.
Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Seoul, IICOMBINED has evolved from a single-brand eyewear label into a diversified multi-brand lifestyle group. Beyond Gentle Monster, which is renowned for frames tailored to Asian facial features and avant-garde artistic retail spaces, the Korean group’s broader portfolio includes fragrance and skincare brand TAMBURINS, artisanal café NUDAKE, headwear label ATiiSSU, and tableware brand NUFLAAT.
IICOMBINED has established a strong foothold in the domestic Korean market, with rapid expansion across APAC, Europe, and North America, particularly in China and Japan, through a multi-channel strategy. Its brands are popular among young consumers and worn by global celebrities, including Korean idols such as BTS and BLACKPINK’s Jennie Kim and US celebrity Kendrick Lamar and supermodel Gigi Hadid.
Gentle Monster in May officially introduced its first AI-enabled intelligent eyewear powered by Google’s Gemini and Samsung’s hardware engineering strengths. This AI eyewear collection is scheduled to hit the market later this autumn.
“IICOMBINED has cultivated strong brand resonance among consumers in both Korea and China. Through innovative product design, immersive retail experiences, and effective brand marketing, the group has garnered significant popularity among young consumers globally – particularly Gen Z,” said Michael Yao, a partner at ZWC Partners.
“Against the backdrop of the global rise of K-pop and K-beauty, we believe IICOMBINED is well-positioned for accelerated expansion, particularly in high-growth consumer segments, including eyewear and fragrances, across China and Southeast Asia,” said Yao.
Before the deal, IICOMBINED received an investment in September 2017 from a consortium led by L Catterton Asia, a consumer-focused PE firm backed by French billionaire Bernard Arnault’s family and LVMH.
