Proenza Schouler was founded in 2002 by Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez while attending Parsons. Four years ago, they received an investment from Perima, a private-equity firm (also principal owner of Valentino), giving Perima 45 percent ownership in the fashion label. Hernandez, and McCollough own the rest along with Proenza’s chief executive officer, Shirley Cook.

It is said that a European private-equity firm will be selling it’s shares in Proenza Schouler to New York investors, Andrew Rosen, the executive behind Theory and Helmut Lang and John Howard, the chief executive of Irving Place Capital. Some of Howard’s other investments include shoemaker Stuart Weitzman and a retail chain in Ohio. Years ago, he also was an investor in the fashion labels Aéropostale and Seven for All Mankind.

Proenza has a large following in the luxury fashion world and most recently, an “it” bag, the PS1 which has been selling off the shelves for a few years. With the fashion and financial force behind Rosen and Howard, if the deal goes through, the future of Proenza Schouler has endless expansion possibilities.

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(Image via twenty2.onsugar.com)