KupiVIP to go public in New York to raise 125 million

KupiVIP, a leading Russian fashion e-tailer, has spilled the beans on its intentions to go public in 2014, aimed to rise up to 125 million dollars. New York will be the flotation’s scenario, according to KupiVIP’s CEO and founder Oskar Hartmann.

The funds will be allocated to build out its logistics system, explained founder and CEO of the company, Oskar Hartmann, in an interview with Bloomberg. After having secured about 100 million dollars in venture financing over the last two years, the fashion online retailer is ready to go public in New York next year.

By the time being, KupiVIP has just revealed the appointment of Goldman Sachs and Jefferies & Co. to advise them on the floatation, although no mandate has been awarded yet and KupiVIP declined further comment on the company's financing needs, its possible valuation or any further details regarding the time frame they have in mind for the IPO, reported Ria Novosti on Tuesday.

In April 2012, Hartmann said the company was eyeing up an IPO within the next two years, although remained wary and pointed out that those plans might be put on hold given the then uncertain times for IPOs in Russia (at that time Vkontakte, the Russian Facebook, delayed its flotation due to the market).

KupiVIP, known by many as the Russian replica to Vente-Privee, accounts among its current investors the likes of Accel Partners and Mangrove Capital Partners. KupiVIP revenue in 2011 reached 160 million dollars, according to ‘Forbes’. As unveiled by the company itself last summer, the company revenues forecast for 2012 was of 300 million dollars, and projects that it will be pulling in 1 billion dollars annually within the next five years, published ‘TechCrunch’.

“Russia is set to converge with the global trends in e-commerce,” Hartmann said in an interview with ‘Bloomberg’ earlier this year. “In five years, half of its 143 million population will be buying goods online,” he added, saying that the proceeds of the float will be used to acquire additional warehousing space and build out delivery networks.

KupiVIP started in 2008 helping fashion brands get rid of excess inventory with limited-time sales online, selling high-end brands as Valentino or Adidas. The company, which has almost 10 million users, is expanding now into non-discounted retail with www.shoptime.ru.

The company also owns KupiLuxe, dedicated to high-end luxury goods; ShopTime, a full-priced e-commerce fashion site; and a white-label e-commerce service for specific brands such as Adidas and Mexx that are determined to crack on the Russian consumer market.