Neff Headwear founder and CEO Shaun Neff poses in his office in Camarillo. He moved his company to Ventura County nine years ago.

Camarillo sportswear company Neff Headwear was acquired by Mad Engine, the licensed apparel wholesaler for Disney and its affiliated companies, according to a news release May 16.

Mad Engine took ownership of the company from Marlin Equity Partners and the Neff family, who founded it in 2002.

“We’re excited to have this opportunity to acquire Neff, a brand we’ve long admired and feel has significant untapped potential,” Mad Engine CEO Danish Gajiani said in the news release.

Founder Shaun Neff has been appointed chief creative officer at Mad Engine.

“We’re thrilled to welcome Shaun to our Mad Engine team,” Gajiani said. “Shaun is a uniquely talented guy with tons of great, actionable ideas, not only for the Neff business, but for Mad Engine as a whole.”

Founded in 1987, Mad Engine expanded into branded apparel in March after its acquisition of Lifted Research Group, opening its Orange County operations. It was not clear whether Neff would move from its Camarillo headquarters or what the impacts would be to its 90 employees, 70 of whom are based in the Tri-Counties.

“This is a great thing for Neff. Mad Engine has a phenomenal team, they’re strong financially, and they’ve got superior supply chain capabilities,” Neff said. “Most importantly, they have a deep passion for our business. And in this new role, I’m super motivated to bring fresh, out-of-the-box opportunities to the Mad Engine team.”

Moss Adams, Buchalter and Wells Fargo facilitated the acquisition.

• Contact Marissa Nall at mnall@pacbiztimes.com.