Vestiaire Collective secures 49.7 million pounds funding for international growth

London - Luxury resale fashion marketplace Vestiaire Collective has secured 58 million euros (49.7 million pounds) in funding to support its international growth and boost its operational capabilities.

The money raised in the funding round, led by new investor Vitruvian Partners together with existing majority shareholders Eurazeo and Idinvest Partners, is set to be used to improve Vestiaire Collective's current operational capabilities in Europe and fuel its expansion in the US as well as its expansion into new markets this year, such as Asia Pacific. The luxury fashion marketplace first entered the US market in 2015 and has grown over the past 18 months, and now aims to establish itself as the leading company for pre-owned fashion.

In addition, the funds will also be used to expand Vestiaire Collective's distribution platform and accelerate improvements to their users' multi-channel experience. The company also aims to construct a new logistics centre in France this year to meet increasing demand. The expansion plans are expected to create an additional 120 jobs globally within the next year and half. The pre-owned company aims to hire more professionals to support its international expansion and reinforce its tech team.

"Through their investment in a new round of funding, our new and existing investors are backing our business model and are confident in our capacity to pursue tremendous international growth," commented Sébastien Fabre, founder and CEO of Vestiaire Collective. "They are providing us with the means for organic and possibly non-organic growth, to consolidate our leadership in Europe, pursue in a similarly rapid growth in the US, as well as enter new high potential markets such as Asia Pacific."

"Over the last eight years, we have consistently delivered remarkable growth, which makes us highly confident in our ability to deliver on our ambition to become the leading global company in luxury and premium pre-owned fashion." Founded in 2009, Vestiaire Collective has raised a total of 116 million euros (99.5 million pounds) in funding from the likes of Zadig & Voltaire, Ventech, Balderton Capital, Condé Nast International, Idinvest, Eurazeo and Vitruvian.

"Vestiaire Collective is the largest specialist marketplace for pre-owned luxury clothes and accessories in Europe by a great distance and its highly disruptive platform is rapidly growing the market and enabling it to take share from less efficient legacy models," added Thomas Studd, Partner at Vitruvian Partners.

Photo: Vestiaire Collective Screenshot