Alex Bhathal: Building the Raj Empire


ORANGE COUNTY BUSINESS JOURNAL

BY KATIE MURAR

MARCH 20, 2023

Alex Bhathal got involved with his family’s business at age 10, when he was hired to file checks at Raj Swim, the locally based company founded by his parents and which designs, manufactures and markets designer and private label swimwear under nationally recognized brands.

The employment didn’t last long.

“My dad fired me the next year because I was more interested in swiveling in his office chair than doing actual work,” Bhathal told the Business Journal.

A little over a decade and two degrees later, Bhathal was ready to get back in the family business. He was named president of the company in 2006, and with sister Lisa Bhathal Merage, the pair led a private equity backed acquisition of the company, the largest of its kind in the history of the swimwear industry.

Once again, Bhathal didn’t intend on staying with the company for the long term.

“I entered the business with the intention to grow and scale the company and allow my parents to retire from the business, before ultimately exiting the company,” Bhathal said.
Today, Bhathal is the founder and managing partner of Raj­ Capital, the family investment office that counts four portfolio companies, including Raj Swim that the family bought back from the private equity firm. He also serves on the board of several notable investment firms with sizable Orange County operations.

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