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No single answer · Toronto, Ontario
⚠ Sale agreed — becoming US-owned
⚠ US-controlled
⚠ Still being verified — see what we found below.
Canadian-founded in 1973 and still headquartered in Toronto, but not straightforwardly Canadian-owned. Searchlight Capital Partners, a private equity firm headquartered in New York, bought a majority stake in 2015 and has been the controlling shareholder for a decade; Searchlight, the Budman family holding company Kernwood and the directors and officers together hold about 69% of the voting interest. PENDING: on 21 August 2026 Roots agreed to be taken private by Marquee Brands, a US brand-management company, at C$4.10 per share, partnered with Toronto-based JM&A (Joe Mimran and Frank Rocchetti), who would run design, manufacturing, distribution and retail. The deal still needs a two-thirds shareholder vote (meeting expected October 2026), separate minority approval, Competition Act clearance and Ontario court approval, and is targeted to close in Q4 2026, after which Roots delists from the TSX. Roots says the brand and head office stay in Toronto. Labelled unclear rather than Canadian: it is legally Canadian-owned today, but has been controlled from the US for a decade and is now being sold outright to a US buyer, which together makes a plain 'Canadian' label misleading even before the deal closes. Recheck when the deal closes or fails.
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