Farfetch

Farfetch Limited
Type of businessSubsidiary
FoundedJune 2007; 17 years ago (June 2007)
HeadquartersLondon, England
Owner
Founder(s)José Neves
IndustryE-commerce
ProductsClothes, shoes, accessories, jewellery, designer
Employees5,441 (2020)
URLfarfetch.com

Farfetch is a British e-commerce company focused on luxury clothing and beauty products. It operates as a digital marketplace that sells products from several hundred brands, boutiques and department stores from around the world.[1] In January 2024, the company was acquired by Coupang.[2]

History

[edit]

Farfetch was founded in June 2007 by Portuguese businessman José Neves as a marketplace for high-end fashion.[3] The company was based in London and had a launch team of 5 people.[4] Initially registered as Far-fetch.com Ltd from 2007- 2010, then Farfetch.com Ltd from 2010 - 2013,[5] the company's idea was to connect small offline fashion boutiques with a global customer base using technology.[6]

In 2015, Farfetch announced its acquisition of one of the boutiques in its network, London high end retailer Browns.[7] According to Neves, the aim was a closer integration of online and offline shopping in a "seamless experience".[8]

In June 2017, Farfetch acquired fashion e-commerce website Style.com from Conde Nast,[9] the same month Chinese e-commerce company JD.com Inc. had bought a stake in Farfetch for $397 million.[10]

In September 2018, Farfetch (FTCH.N) listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).[11] The IPO raised $885 million after the issue of 33.6 million new shares and early investors sold up to 10.6 million shares.[12] It was reported that Neves will net $1.2 billion from the IPO.[13]

On 24 September 2018, animal rights activist organization PETA announced that they had purchased shares that would allow them to attend annual shareholder meetings and stop the company from selling fur products.[14]

In December 2018, Farfetch acquired sneaker reseller, Stadium Goods, for $250 million.[15] Three months later, it agreed to merge its Chinese business with JD.com.[16]

In August 2019, Farfetch acquired New Guards Group, the parent organisation of Off-White designer label for $675million.[17] Immediately following the purchase, Farfetch's shares plunged by over 40 percent.[18]

In November 2020, Farfetch entered into a joint partnership with Richemont and Alibaba.[19] Alibaba and Richemont jointly invested $600 million in Farfetch, taking a combined 25% stake in Farfetch's Chinese ventures.[20]

In October 2021, Farfetch launched its in-house fashion brand, There Was One.[21] In January 2022, the firm acquired Los Angeles based beauty retailer Violet Grey for $55.7 million.[22]

In April 2022, Farfetch announced the acquisition of Wannaby Inc.[23] In August, it reached an agreement to purchase a 47.5% stake in fashion e-commerce YNAP Group from Swiss luxury conglomerate Richemont, turning Net-a-Porter into a neutral platform with no controlling shareholder.[24]

In October 2023, CreditRiskMonitor reported that Farfetch was nearing a potential Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.[25] Meanwhile, after shutting down their own beauty department, it announced the sale of Violet Grey after less than 2 years of ownership.[26]

In November 2023, it was reported that luxury conglomerate LVMH was considering purchasing back the license for Off-White, or alternatively buying Farfetch outright.[27] The following month, Farfetch began seeking other offers to purchase the company including one from Carmen Busquets, a cofounding investor of Net-a-Porter.[28] The deal to purchase YNAP Group from Richemont fell through in December 2023 following the precipitous drop in Farfetch's market capitalization and continued losses.[29]

On 18 December 2023 it was announced the firm would be acquired by South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang in a deal that would give Farfetch access to $500 million of capital.[30][31][32][33] Despite challenges from a group of investors dubbed the 2027 Ad Hoc Group, who held over 50 percent of Farfetch's convertible notes, the purchase was completed on 31 January 2024.[2][34]

In February 2024, European luxury conglomerate Kering announced they would no longer work directly with Farfetch and were pulling their brands immediately. Going forward, Kering products will only be available on Farfetch via third party boutiques. In a statement to WWD, Deputy CEO Jean-Marc Duplaix said "Farfetch is not a strategic partner for us."[35]

Current operations

[edit]

Farfetch currently operates marketplace websites and mobile apps in English, Spanish, French, Japanese, Chinese, Arabic, German, Dutch, Brazilian Portuguese, Korean, Italian, Danish, Swedish and Russian[36] and ships to customers in almost 190 countries.[37]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Online fashion curator FarFetch, which links shops to customers, grows in China". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  2. ^ a b Morris, Malique (31 January 2024). "South Korea's Coupang Completes Farfetch Acquisition". The Business of Fashion. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Farfetch Company Profile: Stock Performance & Earnings | PitchBook".
  4. ^ "The Farfetch journey, 10 years from start-up to IPO". Medium. 9 October 2018.
  5. ^ "FARFETCH UK LIMITED overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 February 2023.
  6. ^ "Farfetch. 400 designer boutiques in one place, anywhere, anytime". Peter Fisk.
  7. ^ Milligan, Lauren. "Farfetch Buys Browns". British Vogue. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  8. ^ "FARFETCH ACQUIRES LONDON RETAILER BROWNS AS IT WORKS TO REINVENT LUXURY SHOPPING". Fashionista. 12 May 2015.
  9. ^ "Farfetch Buys Style.com, Forges Global Partnership With Condé Nast". WWD. 13 June 2017.
  10. ^ "JD.com Pays $397 Million for Stake in Fashion Shop Farfetch". Bloomberg.com. 22 June 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
  11. ^ "FARFETCH LTD (FTCH) IPO". NASDAQ.com. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  12. ^ White, Sarah. "Farfetch tops price range in IPO in boon to luxury market". Reuters.com. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  13. ^ "José Neves Nets $1.2 Billion in Farfetch IPO". The Business of Fashion. 21 September 2018. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  14. ^ Elven, Marjorie van. "PETA buys Farfetch shares to push company to stop selling fur". Retrieved 29 November 2018.
  15. ^ "Farfetch acquires online sneaker platform, Stadium Goods, for $250m". The Hustle. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 17 December 2018.
  16. ^ "Farfetch to merge China sales platform with JD.com". Financial Times. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  17. ^ Fernandez, Chantal (8 August 2019). "Why Farfetch Bought New Guards Group". Business of Fashion. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
  18. ^ "Farfetch Stock Plunges After Acquiring Off-White Licensee in $675 Million New Guards Deal". WWD. 8 August 2019.
  19. ^ "Farfetch opens the floodgates for smaller luxury brands to enter China". Glossy. 9 November 2020. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  20. ^ China, Tech In (16 November 2020). "Alibaba and Richemont jointly invest in Farfetch". Medium.com. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  21. ^ Bateman, Kristen (19 October 2021). "Farfetch Is Launching Its Own Fashion Brand, Shop It Now". Vogue.
  22. ^ "Online retailer Farfetch Discloses How Much It Paid for Violet Grey". Yahoo! News. 10 March 2023.
  23. ^ "Farfetch Announces First Quarter 2022 Results". Bloomberg.com. 26 May 2022.
  24. ^ "EX-99.1". www.sec.gov. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  25. ^ "11 retailers at risk of bankruptcy in 2023". Retail Dive. 2 October 2023. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
  26. ^ Rao, Priya (17 October 2023). "Farfetch to Sell Violet Grey". The Business of Fashion. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
  27. ^ Salamone, Lorenzo (6 November 2023). "Off-White: will Virgil Abloh's brand be bought by LVMH?". nss magazine. Retrieved 9 November 2023.
  28. ^ Conti, Samantha; Clark, Evan (13 December 2023). "The Clock Is Ticking at Farfetch". WWD. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  29. ^ Jucca, Lisa (29 November 2023). "Richemont Digital Strategy Goes Back to Square One". Reuters. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  30. ^ Coupang to Rescue Farfetch, Injecting $500 Million Into Troubled Firm Women's Wear Daily, SAMANTHA CONTI, EVAN CLARK, DECEMBER 18, 2023
  31. ^ Farfetch Sold to South Korea's Coupang Business of Fashion, MALIQUE MORRIS, 18 December 2023
  32. ^ Farfetch Gets $500 Million Lifeline From Coupang New York Times, December 18, 2023
  33. ^ Farfetch rescued in last-minute deal Draper's, EMMA FINAMORE, 18 DECEMBER 2023
  34. ^ Schulz, Madeleine (26 January 2024). "Farfetch investors challenge 'poison pill' Coupang sale". Vogue Business. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  35. ^ Conti, Samantha; Diderich, Joelle; Diderich, Joelle (8 February 2024). "Kering Pulls Brands Off Farfetch in Wake of Sale to Coupang". WWD. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  36. ^ "Farfetch's Global Platform Play". The Business of Fashion. 5 April 2015. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  37. ^ "UK leads world's ecommerce exports as fashion brands travel well". Retrieved 9 February 2017.
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