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Tag: FashionValet

  • Funding boost for FashionValet

    Funding boost for FashionValet

    Malaysia-based eCommerce fashion company FashionValet has received a “multi-million-dollar” funding from Start Today, which runs Japanese online fashion mall ZozoTown.

    FashionValet co-founder/CEO Fadzarudin Anuar says the move is “clearly more than a financial investment”, and that Start Today’s experience in building ZozoTown will prove invaluable as FashionValet charts its next stage of growth around the region.

    “FashionValet has done an amazing job of developing high-demand brands and products from local designers,” says Start Today CDO Koji Yanagisawa. “We feel there is a lot we can share with them with respect to back-end operations.”

    Founded in 2010 by Fadzarudin and his blogger wife Vivy Yusof, FashionValet sells fashion apparel, shoes and accessories, and in 2014 alone had total revenue of more than $1.2 billion. Over the past 12 months it claims to have doubled its revenue, and set up a presence in Indonesia and Singapore. The company has more than 500 Southeast Asian brands, with half from Malaysia and 180 from Indonesia, and 40 per cent of its online sales come from international customers.

    It first physical store was in Kuala Lumpur, with a second scheduled to open along Singapore’s Orchard Rd this year.

    Start Today’s investment in FashionValet comes exactly a year after the startup’s Series A round, led by Silicon Valley-based Elixir Capital. Internet company MYEG also invested in the company in 2012.

    Founded in 1998, Start Today is based in Chiba, Japan.

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  • FashionValet seals cash injection

    FashionValet seals cash injection

    A Malaysia online fashion destination started by a local married couple has attracted serious capital investment led by US private equity investor Elixir Capital.

    While the exact amount of the investment has not been disclosed by either party, the multimillion dollar injection will allow FashionValet to accelerate the expansion of its online reach through mobile e-commerce, big data strategies and original customer-centric content and to scale its operations into other Asian cities.

    Elixir Capital is a global private equity firm based in Silicon Valley, California.

    “The investment from Elixir Capital marks a significant step for FashionValet as we continue to really develop the brand beyond Malaysia and pave the way for retail e-commerce locally,” said the FashionValet’s co-Founder and CEO, Fadzarudin Anuar.

    “We’ve seen substantial e-commerce growth already, yet there’s room for much more in Malaysia, where there’s less than one percent penetration of sales online, as compared to 10 per cent in China, US and Western Europe, and we want to continue to foster this trend as one of the pioneering brands in the industry.”

    FashionValet tripled its revenue in 2014 on the way to becoming a leader in Malaysia’s online fashion sector. The company has managed to do this while keeping operations lean and reactive to community demand.

    “We were approached to be funded by several other companies, but Elixir Capital shared the same vision we had to grow FashionValet into a multi-million dollar company that champions local designers in Asia – which is what really convinced us to work with them,” added Vivy Yusof, co-Founder and chief creative officer of FashionValet.

    “FashionValet now forms the Southeast Asian centerpiece for Elixir’s multi-market investment platform in digital commerce, with accelerated enterprise growth and regional expansion serving as our investment thesis,” said Arshad Ahmed, MD of Elixir Capital.

    “FashionValet has the makings potentially of a homegrown Malaysian IPO in retail e-commerce.”

    FashionValet’s founders say they want to use the capital to better serve their customers and suppliers alike, and to improve the customer experience and product offering.

    FashionValet offers a wide selection of ready-to-wear garments, including Muslimah attire, with customers throughout Malaysia, Brunei, and Singapore. It stocks homegrown brands and designer products, serving as an outlet for up-and-coming designers across Asia.