Second-hand fashion marketplace Vestiaire Collective has launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise at least €1 million from individual investors.
- Vestiaire Collective will advertise the crowdfunding, which is open to anyone over age 18 in Europe and the UK, on its website and mobile app.
- The crowdfunding, through UK-based platform Crowdcube, opened Tuesday and a subscription phase will start on 6 February, as the marketplace aims to become profitable by year-end and potentially go public.
The campaign: The crowdfunding is priced at €1.78 per share, valuing Vestiaire at €1.1 billion, Reuters reported. That is in line with a November funding round led by private equity firm Eurazeo, its biggest shareholder with a stake of around 25%. In mid-2022 the company was valued at €1.4 billion.
- The company said on its website: “We are opening this opportunity to our community because we believe we can transform the fashion industry towards a more sustainable future and because we want our members and contributors to share in our company’s future success.”
The shares: The shares that Vestiaire is offering are preferred shares (Series I1). Those preferred shares are the most senior equity instruments in Vestiaire Collective’s capital table at the moment, therefore providing substantial downside protection.
- [Preferred shares have voting rights on any resolution put to the shareholders plus preferential rights to receive proceeds in case of exit (known as a liquidation preference).]
- Once the round is complete, if there is a resolution that requires a vote, Crowdcube will manage the process. Vestiaire Collective will notify them of the resolution, and all investors will be contacted to ask which way they would like to vote. Whatever the outcome of the majority is, Crowdcube will vote that way as a block.
State of business: Sales of the platform grew 25% last year. Vestiaire calls itself a marketplace for "desirable" pre-owned fashion.
- Since November 2022, Vestiaire has banned more than 60 "fast fashion" brands from being sold on the platform, including Boohoo, Gap, H&M, Shein, Uniqlo, and Zara.
- Founded in Paris in 2009, the company aims to become profitable around the end of 2024, and an initial public offering "would be the natural next step after we reach profitability."
- Gucci owner Kering holds a 5% stake in Vestiaire. Softbank has been an investor since 2021, though the amount of the stake is not known.
What they said:
The goal is really to bring our most loyal customers into our shareholder base. We really see this as a marketing effort to connect with our community. It's reflective of the current environment but I think it is a fair valuation.
— Maximilian Bittner
Chief Executive Officer
Vestiaire Collective
