Switzerland's Calida Group sells luxury lingerie brand Cosabella to Crown Brands Group

Fernanda Tronco Sat, July 25, 2026 at 12:13 PM PDT 4 min read

A global apparel company, continuing a yearslong strategy of streamlining its portfolio, is selling off one of its luxury lingerie brands after turnaround efforts failed to reverse sales declines.

The decision comes as retailers increasingly shed underperforming brands to focus investment on their strongest businesses amid softer consumer spending and higher operating costs. The latest move adds to a growing list of retailers making similar adjustments.

Calida Group Sells Cosabella

Calida Group has sold Cosabella to New York-based brand management and private equity firm Crown Brands Group through an Asset Purchase Agreement that closed on July 23, 2026.

The transaction includes the Cosabella trademark, related intellectual property rights, and the inventory. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Crown Brands Group specializes in acquiring consumer brands and expanding their reach through licensing partnerships, retail distribution, and long-term brand development.

Calida Group acquired Cosabella for $80 million in 2022 as part of an effort to strengthen its department store and digital businesses across the U.S. and Europe.

Founded in Miami in 1983, Cosabella is known for its Italian-inspired luxury lingerie.

Why Did Calida Group Sell Cosabella?

Founded in 1941, Switzerland-based Calida Group owns and operates premium apparel and intimate apparel brands. The company has steadily simplified its portfolio in recent years. After owning as many as seven brands, it has been divesting businesses since 2020 and now focuses primarily on Calida and Aubade, according to its website.

In 2024, Cosabella underwent a major restructuring that included repositioning the brand and implementing cost-cutting measures to improve performance. However, those efforts failed to reverse its decline and ultimately weighed on the group's overall results.

According to Calida Group's half-year report 2026:

• Net sales fell nearly 8% year over year
• Net income declined roughly 12%
• Cosabella's net sales dropped approximately 37% to 4.3 million Swiss francs (about $5.25 million), accounting for just 4.6% of the group's total revenue

The company said the first half of 2026 was marked by a persistently challenging retail environment, with performance slightly below expectations. It cited weaker consumer confidence, ongoing economic uncertainty, and heightened price sensitivity, particularly across European markets, as key factors weighing on demand.

Selling Cosabella marks the latest step in the company's multi-year effort to simplify operations and improve profitability after several years of portfolio restructuring.

"With the sale of Cosabella, the Calida Group is further simplifying its brand portfolio and reinforces its focus on the strategic development of its core brands, Calida and Aubade," said Calida Group CEO Thomas Stöcklin in the company's shareholder letter. "At the same time, the transaction creates additional operational and financial flexibility to further develop the brands and strengthen their positioning in the premium segment in a targeted manner."

Calida Group sells Cosabella. — Bennett Raglin/WireImage for Journelle

What's Next for Calida Group and Cosabella?

Looking ahead, Calida Group expects consumer sentiment to remain subdued.