Rhone Apparel, which dubs itself a men’s active wear and lifestyle brand, has closed on a $5 million Series A round of financing.
Rhone has raised an aggregate of $6.2 million. Its last raise was $1.2 million in seed financing in late 2013.
The Series A round includes as investors: Steve Bornstein, former president and chief executive officer for the NFL Network and former chairman, president and ceo of ESPN; David Stern, NBA Commissioner Emeritus; Ryen Russillo, host of ESPN Radio’s Russillo & Kannell; Shane Battier, former NBA player, and M3 Ventures, an investment fund managed by former CAA executive Martin Dolfi.
Rhone plans to use the financing to expand on its R&D capabilities, increase distribution and invest in marketing opportunities. Rhone plans to expand into a 4,000-square-foot retail storefront and office in Stamford, Conn., early next year. The company said it has secured the rhone.com domain name for a relaunch of its e-commerce site.
Nate Checketts, cofounder and ceo, said that the brand in the fall would be “available in 20 Bloomingdale’s locations, 15 Equinox locations and 2 Nordstrom locations, as well as over 12 Core Power Yoga and 20 additional gyms and specialty stores.”
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Rhone has been growing its position in the men’s ath-leisure market through fabrications that have advanced technological features such as incorporating silver into the fibers for odor fighting and antimicrobial properties, a new Polartec Power Dry patented construction for quick-wicking, and sun protection through Ultraviolet Protection Factor 50 fabrics.