Culture Kings founder laughs off $500 million US stock market loss

Culture King founders Simon and Tah-nee Beard reportedly lost $500m on the US stock market.

The founder of the global fashion giant Culture Kings has laughed off reports he’d lost $500 million in a stock market crash.

Gold Coast-based Simon and Tah-nee Beard founded the Culture Kings sneaker and streetwear brand in 2008, before it rapidly expanded across Australia and New Zealand within a few years.

Fast-forward more than 10 years after its launch, and the successful business was snapped up by US buyer AKA Brands for $307m in cash plus 23.3 million shares.

It was reported in 2020 Culture Kings was turning over almost $200m with a $20m net profit.

Culture Kings founder Simon Beard and his friend Emil Juresic laugh off the $500 million loss. Photo / TikTok

The husband-and-wife duo made their debut on the Australian Financial Review Rich List in 2020, with a total net worth of $626m.

But this week, news broke that Beard had lost $500m when the stock market took a nosedive.

His response was to simply laugh off the financial loss.

A TikTok video posted by friend Emil Juresic shows Beard being jovial about the whole experience.

“Are you reading the same article I just read? How does it feel?” Jurisic asks in the video.

Beard said “it sucks”, but he’s used to “checking out and watching” share prices change every day.

“But it’s an entrepreneur’s journey to de-risk some; you take risks, you roll the dice,” Beard said.

“Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose.

“We de-risk, it’s all house money.”

At their peak, the Beards’ shares hit US$14.76 (NZD$23.59) on the US stock market, with the husband and wife valued at earning NZD549.6 million with their 23.3 million shares.

However, those shares plummeted to a mere US$0.55 ($0.87) in late March.

The fall slashed the Beards’ share price value to about $16m.

When asked by his friend whether he’d made a “smart decision” to sell his company for $300m, Beard said he hasn’t “taken the loss yet” and he won’t be selling his shares.

“I’m very thankful my wife didn’t let me bet the farm and roll the dice on the whole lot again, like I wanted to,” Beard shared.

“That’s the whole entrepreneur [game] again, you just want to bet yourself.

“It’s an important lesson there to de-risk, even though everything in the market is ripping; that’s just the market and how it recalibrates.”

Beard revealed his base level of success is $30 million, and anything over that is just for fun.

“$30m is the figure to get to, because after that, you can buy all the toys,” he said.

The clothing company offers “a premium streetwear brand with exclusivity and superiority across a wide range of genres, styles and cultures”.

It’s since gained a cult following, as it offers 100 international brands and “world-exclusive pieces”.

The couple cut ties with Culture Kings altogether two years after the sale, but it’s understood they continue to hold shares in the company.