Alloy Inc., whose products aimed at young adults and older include Gossip Girl and the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, has agreed to be acquired by an investor group led by ZelnickMedia in a deal valued at $126.5 million. According to a statement, the new owners, which include members of Alloy’s senior management team, “aim to build Alloy into a leading entertainment and media brand for the millennial generation (ages 10-29).” The company had sales of $205 million in the fiscal year ended January 31 and an operating loss of $2.4 million.
Alloy is best known to publishers as a book packager under Alloy Entertainment. In 2009 it produced 35 new books and has a library of over 1,000 titles. A number of its books, for which it usually retains all rights, are made into television shows (Gossip Girl; The Vampire Diaries) or movies (Sisterhood). Les Morgenstein will remain CEO of Alloy Entertainment, and will now work with Bill Jemas, former COO of Marvel and a board member of the new company, and Geraldine Laybourne, best known for developing Nickelodeon and launching the Oxygen cable network, who will serve as chairman. Alloy cofounders Matt Diamond and Jim Johnson will continue to serve as CEO and COO, respectively.
The deal is not expected to close until the fourth quarter.
