‘Fixer Upper’ stars explore sale of a stake in Magnolia brand

Magnolia, the home and lifestyle brand founded by Fixer Upper stars Chip and Joanna Gaines, is exploring options including the sale of a minority stake after fielding interest, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

The Waco, Texas-based company, founded in 2003, has received interest from suitors including strategic partners and financial institutions and is in the early stages of evaluating its options, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss confidential information. It’s unclear how much Magnolia could be valued at in any transaction, and there’s no guarantee that a stake sale will occur.

A representative for Chip and Joanna Gaines declined to comment.

The company’s business lines include a physical and e-commerce furniture store, a retail collaboration with Target known as Hearth & Hand, vacation rentals, real estate listings and a quarterly magazine known as the Magnolia Journal, its website shows.

The couple rose to fame after their pilot aired in 2013 on HGTV. They have since struck a joint-venture with Warner Bros. Discovery to form Magnolia Network, which features original content including new “Fixer Upper: Welcome Home” episodes, as well as “Magnolia Table with Joanna Gaines,” a cooking show.

Other celebrities that have established business ventures include Jessica Alba, whose Honest is now public. Ryan Reynolds sold a gin maker for $610 million, and Reese Witherspoon sold a majority stake in production company Hello Sunshine to a firm run by former Walt Disney Co. executives and backed by Blackstone. Rihanna’s lingerie brand, Savage X Fenty, explored an initial public offering last year, Bloomberg News reported at the time.