Valley Eyewear, the Australian-founded sunglasses brand that counted A-list celebrities including Chris Hemsworth, Margot Robbie, and Kanye West among its high-profile wearers, has been placed into liquidation following a Federal Court order, launching an urgent fire sale of more than AU$600,000 in inventory and business assets.
Established in 2011 on Australia’s Gold Coast by ex-Quiksilver marketing executive Michael Crawley, his wife Tenielle Crawley, and their long-time friend Matthew Grippo, the brand grew from a local startup to a globally recognized label, with distribution across more than 20 countries. It built a reputation for edgy, stylish designs that resonated with both consumers and famous figures, cementing its status as a popular accessories label both at home in Australia and abroad.
But behind its public growth, tensions between the three co-founders escalated into a public court battle, ultimately leading to the court order for urgent liquidation and sale of the company. The liquidation order also extends to House of Valley, a sister entity registered earlier this year to open a new brick-and-mortar retail store and on-site optometry clinic in Burleigh Heads, which has now collapsed alongside the original brand.
Federal Court appointed James Robba and Jason Bettles from insolvency firm Worrells to oversee the liquidation process. The full asset package up for sale includes not only the brand’s large inventory of new sunglasses and optical equipment, but also motor vehicles owned by the business, general plant and equipment, all intellectual property rights, existing customer databases, and the brand’s established digital and social media presence.
Robba confirmed that the business will continue normal day-to-day operations while the urgent sale campaign progresses, noting that the insolvency team is working closely with company directors, employees, and other key stakeholders to facilitate a smooth process. “Our objective is to give interested parties the opportunity to acquire the business of the companies, while seeking to maximise the outcome for all stakeholders,” Robba told local outlet The Courier Mail.
In a surprising development just two days before the liquidation order was issued, Tenielle Crawley registered a new entity named Valley Eyewear Group, with herself and Robert Fullagar listed as co-directors. On the same day, the Crawleys launched a second new firm, Crawley Family Holdings, which now holds a majority stake in the newly registered Valley Eyewear Group. Details on the future plans for the new entity have not been released to the public.
While the full internal circumstances leading to the brand’s collapse have not been made public, this is not the first time the company has faced significant controversy. In 2018, Valley Eyewear drew widespread global backlash after it used the Spomenik Holocaust memorial in Croatia, a site honoring 70,000 people executed during World War II, as a backdrop for an advertising campaign for its “Black Zero” sunglasses collection. The brand quickly issued a public apology, removed all campaign content, and claimed it had been completely unaware of the historical sensitivity of the location at the time of shooting.