News English — Venture Capital

A review of Noah Conference London, Oct 30-31, 2018. A list of retail technology companies looking for funding. Some of which may be looking at an IPO in 2019 (Farfetch presented at the conference in 2017 and IPO'd in 2018!).

Boozt.com, the PE- & industry-backed Swedish fashion etailer, listed on Nasdaq Nordic on 31 May 2017 at the higher end of its offer price of SEK 62 per share (offer range SEK 54-63). The listing valued the company at about SEK 3.4bn (~£300m). The share traded at SEK 79 on June 7, 2017 representing a close to 30% lift in its offer price. However, only 2% up from its starting day price of SEK 77.50.   Boozt attempted to sell mono-brand stores and was successful with signing up both Ecco and Day Birger Mikkelsen (Ecco was also an investor). However,...

TechPitch 4.5 is monthly pitch platform for tech startups. Thomas Andersson of Styleintelligence was invited to sit on the judges panel for the Luxe, Retail and Fashion edition held in Irwin Mitchell's offices just off Chancery Lane. Eight startups got 3 minutes to pitch their businesses. This elevator-pitch style events are popular in London and get quite a bit of traction. What the judges thought: Optimonk Wearisma Genostyle What the Audience thought: Wearisma Genostyle It should be noted that out of all the eight companies Optimonk was the only company with close to $1m revenue, established customers on two continents...

Since JAB went public with their intention to sell off Jimmy Choo there has been continued speculation on who might acquire the company. JAB, an investment/holding company, grew out of the Reckitt Benckiser FMCG empire and have assembled a division of fashion brands including Jimmy Choo, Belstaff, and Bally. The company also hold a significant stake in Coty, the beauty company, and a number of coffee related businesses. In 2016 JAB attempted to list Belstaff, but ultimately had to terminate the process due to lack of demand. Its April 2017 announcmenent that it is seeking to offload Jimmy Choo fits...

In 2007, at the height of its popularity, Inflexion Capital invested in a 27% stake in the company. In 2012 the company closed down its sister brand - Aubin & Wills and hired Wendy Becker as COO. In 2013 Wendy Becker was promoted to CEO of the company by its owner, Peter Williams.  In Aug 2015, the founder, Peter Williams came back to head up the company and in 2016 the company filed reports showing that its holding company made a loss of £14m Jack Wills is a premium fashion retailer of ‘Fabulously British’ casual wear, homeware and accessories for...