Fashion Investments and M&A

Date: March 2022
Buyer: Vestiaire Collective
Target: Tradesy
Business: Secondhand fashion
Value: Undisclosed
Details: Vestiaiare Collective, the French pre-loved fashion online marketplace, has acquired LA-based clothes-resale platform Tradesy, in a bid to increase its reach in the US. Founded in Paris in 2009, B-corporation Vestiaire was one of the first pioneers of the ‘circular fashion movement’, and along with the likes of Tradesy (which was also founded in 2009) and Vinted has profited from the increased interest in pre-loved fashion in recent years, as the sustainability-conscious younger generation turn to peer-to-peer clothing resale sites rather than fast fashion brands. By acquiring Tradesy’s 7 million members, Vestiaire Collective’s membership increases to 23 million, with a gross-merchandise value of over $1b. Vestiaire Collective hopes to become a challenger to the likes of Ebay, which has developed its own pre-loved fashion segment.