By PYMNTS | October 22, 2026
David’s Bridal plans to separate its Pearl division, with Pearl becoming an independent public company offering a digital wedding planning, media and commerce platform, the company said in a Thursday (Oct. 22) press release.
To enable this change, David’s Bridal and special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) K&F Growth Acquisition Corp. II have entered into a non-binding letter of intent regarding a proposed business combination that would make Pearl a standalone, publicly traded company, according to the release.
The non-binding letter of intent involves David’s Bridal separating Pearl into a standalone business that will enter into a business combination with K&F and values Pearl at a pro forma enterprise value of about $350 million, the release said.
David’s Bridal and K&F expect to close the proposed transaction in the first half of 2027, though they make no assurances that it will be consummated at all, per the release.
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David’s Bridal retail stores will remain unaffected by the planned separation and will operate as usual. David’s Bridal is expected to remain a material shareholder in Pearl, the release said.
Pearl is expected to be led by Kelly Cook as its CEO and Elina Vilk as its president following the proposed business combination. Cook is currently CEO of David’s Bridal and has been with the company since 2019. Vilk is currently president and chief business officer of David’s Bridal and has been with the firm since 2024, per the release.
Cook said in the release: “Pearl is shaping the next generation of wedding planning, and this next step will give both businesses room to grow independently while continuing to strengthen each other. With Pearl’s agentic technology and proven business models, combined with David’s Bridal’s strong brand and retail presence, we see tremendous opportunities to help more couples plan their weddings and connect with vendors who can bring their visions to life.”
Dan Fetters, co-CEO of K&F, said in the release: “We were drawn to Pearl’s compelling trifecta of established profitability, highly attractive growth potential and unlevered pristine balance sheet, which, in combination, we believe will create substantial public shareholder value.”
Edward King, co-CEO of K&F, said: “We look forward to partnering with Kelly, Elina and the Pearl team and believe our capital markets and [mergers and acquisitions] expertise will help accelerate Pearl’s growth.”
David’s Bridal launched Pearl Connect, an AI-powered platform connected to Pearl Planner, its consumer wedding planning platform, in September to connect local business and couples who are planning weddings, Vilk told PYMNTS CEO Karen Webster in an interview posted in September.
According to the Thursday press release, Pearl’s ecosystem includes those two offerings as well as Pearl’s Digital Content Network.