Playboy rejects $100 million offer from Hugh Hefner’s youngest son: ‘Not in best interest’

The group that owns the defunct Playboy brand on Thursday rejected a $100 million buyout offer from Cooper Hefner, son of the magazine’s late founder.

“After careful consideration and consideration of Hefner’s unsolicited proposal, our Board determined that the proposal significantly undervalues ​​Playboy’s assets and is not in the best interests of PLBY Group shareholders,” CEO Ben Kohn said in a statement.

“While we certainly understand and appreciate the interest in Playboy’s unparalleled brand, the Board is confident that the Company’s continued pursuit of its Playboy-focused asset-light model will better support long-term shareholder value, ” said Kohn.

The board’s decision was unanimous, the company said.

Playboy Group sank as much as 11% on news of the rejection, but recovered some of the losses to close up 3% at 81 cents a share.

Kohn said the board “will continue to evaluate all options and opportunities for Playboy,” leaving the door open to a revised deal.

Hefner, 33, revealed Monday that he and his investment firm, Hefner Capital, had made an effort to buy back the company made famous more than seven decades ago by Hugh Hefner.

“The decision to purchase Playboy’s assets stems from a personal connection and the unique potential to revitalize a brand that is cared for around the world,” Hefner told The Hollywood Reporter. “This effort is about preserving a legacy built over decades, ensuring that the creativity, values ​​and cultural relevance that defined Playboy are not lost.”

Hefner, whose group of investors includes a hedge fund and one of Playboy’s former licensing partners, told the Wall Street Journal that he would take on the role of CEO.

“It’s a great American company and a great American brand, outside of my personal connection to it,” Hefner told the Journal. But it “has reached a state of potentially non-existence”.

Playboy went public in 2021 by combining with a special buyout company and its stock traded at $50, but it has steadily lost money — and importance — over the years.

The company ended publication of its iconic magazine — which published its first issue in 1953 — in 2020, citing pandemic-era supply chain disruptions as the reason.

But Playboy has long struggled to find its footing in a rapidly evolving media landscape.

It first lost some of its key demographics in the 1980s to Penthouse and Hustler, magazines that published more candid pictures.

Playboy magazine became completely obsolete with the rise of the Internet, which made pornography available.

In 2015, Playboy announced it would stop publishing images of nude women in an attempt to rebrand and create a new market for itself, but the move was largely unsuccessful.

Cloaked Hugh Hefner died in 2017 at the age of 91. He is survived by his four children, including Cooper, who sold all their shares in the company.

Cooper Hefner has lamented the company’s decline, blaming its descent into obsolescence on mismanagement.

“It’s Playboy going into businesses they’ve never operated before,” he told the Journal.

He said that the products “are not resonating at all with consumers, customers or fans”.

“And the decline of the business and the importance of the brand — in terms of not being talked about today — is a direct reflection of that.”