Investment firm Artémis to acquire majority stake in CAA, Bryan Lourd named CEO

French investment firm Artémis is set to acquire a majority stake in Hollywood talent agency giant Creative Arts Agency (CAA).

Bryan Lourd

The Paris-headquartered company, led by French billionaire François-Henri Pinault, is acquiring the stake from former majority owner TPG, a Texas-based private equity firm.

Financial terms have not been disclosed, but the deal is reportedly in the range of US$7bn. The transaction is expected to close before the end of the year and remains subject to several customary closing conditions.

CAA co-chairmen Bryan Lourd, Kevin Huvane and Richard Lovett have agreed to remain with the talent agency over the long term, with Lourd being promoted to CEO once the transaction closes. Jim Burtson will remain president.

TPG first bought into CAA in 2010 with the acquisition of a 35% stake. Four years later, it increased its ownership position to a 53% majority, in a deal that valued the company at US$1.1bn at the time.

François-Henri Pinault

With the Artémis transaction, Singapore-based investment firm Temasek will remain a minority investor in CAA. CMC Capital remains a CAA strategic partner.

CAA, which represents talent and brands across entertainment and sports, has been on a growth trajectory over the past two years with the acquisition of fellow talent agency International Creative Management (ICM), and its deal to take full ownership of the CAA-GBG Global Brand Management Group.

The 48-year-old company is headquartered in LA and has offices in New York, Nashville, Memphis, Chicago, Miami, London, Munich, Geneva, Stockholm, Singapore, Shanghai and Beijing.

Artémis’s portfolio of assets and investments includes luxury goods company Kering, which is the parent company of brands such as Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen and Brion, and contemporary art firm Pinault Collection.

“Artémis is a strategic investor of the highest order, with global reach and resources across countless areas of our clients’ interests, a deeply sophisticated understanding of global brands and how to support their growth, and a passion for creativity and innovation that matches ours and that of our clients,” said Lourd, Lovett, Huvane and Burtson, adding that the team at Artémis “share our vision for a future of limitless new opportunities.”

Pinault, who serves as CEO of Artémis, said CAA “has all the relevant characteristics to be part of the Artémis family, adding increased diversity, both in terms of geographical footprint and business activities, to our other assets.”