The Wall Street Journal
A new fund backed by fashion giant LVMH And more than 200 professional athletes said it is making its first investment, taking a minority stake in a U.S. activewear brand.
The fund known as Champ—an acronym for Champion Athlete Managing Partner—and a handful of other investors are putting nearly $50 million in Rhoback, according to people familiar with the matter. The activewear brand is best known for its dog logo and sweat-wicking polos.
Champ launched in April and aims to raise $500 million to invest in buzzy consumer brands. It is joining with some of America’s best known sports figures, including the basketball star Tyrese Haliburton, football standouts Dak Prescott and Ja’Marr Chase, the WNBA’s Cameron Brink and baseball slugger Mike Trout.
Instead of being paid to endorse a product, the athletes can put their own capital into deals. They are then motivated to use their high-profile status and large social-media followings to promote companies receiving Champ’s backing.
Champ was formed by the Greenwich, Conn.-based private-equity firm L Catterton, which counts LVMH as its main investor, and the sports advisory firm Patricof Co.
Rhoback has a single retail store in Charlottesville, Va., and it plans to use the Champ investment to open new locations, co-founders Kevin Hubbard, Kristina Loftus and Matthew Loftus told The Wall Street Journal. The company expects to continue scaling the business through additional collegiate partnerships and tapping in to communities of male and female influencers.
For Rhoback, which has been in business since 2016, the backing from Champ also marks the company’s first-ever outside investment, the executives told the Journal. Rhoback surpassed $150 million in revenue in 2025 and is on pace to exceed $200 million this year, the co-founders said, adding that they have been profitable since day one.
Hubbard and the Loftuses started the business from their Charlottesville basement roughly a decade ago. They initially traveled the country selling performance polos out of a camper van.
Today, Rhoback’s product assortment includes hoodies, men’s pants and shorts, and a burgeoning women’s business. Rhoback has been a particular hit within the golf community, and has been sported by Wall Street bigwigs from JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Jamie Dimon to Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary.
Rhoback has found success working with younger athletes and moving fast, the co-founders said. It was one of the first activewear brands to work with student athletes in 2021, following a Supreme Court ruling that permitted college athletes to profit from their name, image and likeness.
L Catterton has historically focused on consumer investments, including in the sandal-maker Birkemstock. Patricof Co—started by Mark Patricof, the son of venture capitalist Alan Patricof—has maintained a deep bench of athlete partners who are looking to put more skin in the game through their investments. The two had already teamed up on a handful of investments before Champ, including Cholula Hot Sauce.