Tahnee and Simon Beard, the multi-millionaire husband and wife founders of the sneaker retail empire Culture Kings are all set to chase new adventures after debuting a store in Las Vegas.
Here is everything you need to know.
Culture Kings founders leave the business after opening a shop in Las Vegas
Husband and wife team Tahnee and Simon Beard have decided to step down from running the Culture Kings after successfully debuting its store in Las Vegas.
Moreover, the duo is also responsible for selling slippers during schoolies week on the Gold Coast in 2008.
Meanwhile, the Beards believe that they need to leave the business in order to pursue other ventures while focusing on their family.
In addition, Simon shared that the Las Vegas shop is ‘beating expectations.’ However, he and his wife, ‘are entrepreneurial to our core and the public company … role, it’s not for me, not my best fit’.
He continued, ‘We have built a great team there and I believe they can go and run it, I am still on the board, and I’m there whenever I can help and guide it.’
If you didn’t know, the Gold Coast pair sold a half share of Culture Kings to a Boston-based a.k.a Brands in 2021. The company is a Summit-led roll-up of fashion brands and is also listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
Furthermore, Simon and Tahnee received $307.4 million and 23.3 million shares in the US company for the deal.
Simon Beard reveals plans for Culture Kings
Simon Beard opened up about the future of Culture Kings during a recent interview with the Australian.
He shared that he and his wife Tahnee will remain on board and will also act as advisers to Culture Kings. Additionally, he mentioned that the early exit from operational roles was ‘always part of the plan’ during their deal with Summit Partners.
Simon added, ‘You don’t pay someone $307 million and expect them to keep working a job forever.’
He went on to say, ‘Tahnee and I are market carnies from way back, and I’ve always felt yucky getting a wage. I want to get paid on results, not hours worked.’
Simon mentioned, ‘We’ve got our eyes on some direct-to-consumer brands that have built a great business online. I’d like to help them understand how much their CAC [customer acquisition cost] can be lowered by rolling out stores, and investing to help them do that.’