Luxury online fashion marketplace Cult Mia has announced strong sales in 2024 with plans for fast growth this year following last autumn’s seed funding round.
Cult Mia
The London-based business said its top line virtually tripled last year with net revenue up 191%, beating its forecasts by 4%.
In the last 12 months, its strong performance was helped by average order values (AOV) rising 9% to £564, which it also said beat the AOVs of both Farfetch and Net-A-Porter, “reinforcing its alignment with the expectations of high-end consumers”.
The company also achieved a “significant” reduction in return rate to 15% and maintained discounts at only 7% of gross merchandise value, “underscoring its ability to drive profitability without heavy discounting — rarely seen in the luxury fashion space”.
2024 was also key for the company seeing “a breakthrough performance in the Middle Eastern market”, where gross merchandise value grew more than fourfold year on year, making it the fastest-growing region for the company. The US followed closely with a 2.1 times year on year increase in gross merchandise value, “demonstrating the brand’s ability to scale efficiently in high-potential markets”.
Last October, almost a year after announcing one seed funding milestone, it announced another, saying its seed funding drive had by then raised $5 million/£4.5 million.
The figure was achieved as it raised an extra $2 million in a round including existing investors (Fuel Ventures with participation from Morgan Stanley and David Wertheimer of the family that owns Chanel). Importantly too, the new round also included H&M Group Ventures.
Founder and CEO Nina Briance said that for 2025, the business is “focusing on key areas such as enhancing its technology platform to deliver a seamless and more personalised customer experience, deepening its presence in its core two markets (US and Middle East), and staying true to its commitment to share sustainable and ethical practices, to incentivise its brand partners to make improvements on their ESG journeys”.
It also aims to accelerate its momentum “by continuing to attract and curate the best emerging talent”. With over 250 independent designers applying each month and only 10% being accepted, the company “aims to grow its exclusive portfolio beyond the 400 brands it has already onboarded across 46 countries. With 39% of its products available exclusively on Cult Mia and an impressive 98% retention rate for brands, the company is poised to strengthen its position as the go-to destination for unique, high-quality fashion”.
And it wants to drive customer acquisition following a 146% year-on-year increase in 2024.
Briance added: “2025 is shaping up to be a transformative year for Cult Mia as we continue to challenge industry norms and redefine the luxury fashion experience. With the incredible support from our investors and the momentum we’ve built over the last year, we’re focused on scaling our platform, empowering emerging designers, and setting a new standard for ethics and inclusivity in fashion. We’re excited to build on our success in markets like the US and Middle East, and take bold steps towards our vision of making Cult Mia the go-to destination for curated, values-driven luxury.”
Chinese online marketplace Temu and fast-fashion retailer Shein will be liable for the sale of unsafe and dangerous products on their platforms, the European Commission said on Wednesday as part of a crackdown against the flood of cheap ecommerce imports into the European Union.
The EU executive also said it would coordinate a joint investigation by the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Network of national consumer authorities into Shein based on suspicions that the company infringes EU consumer protection rules.
The measures by the EU executive echoed a similar push by the U.S. government which ended a trade provision this week used by retailers including Temu and Shein to ship low-value packages duty-free to the United States.
The Commission said its concerns were triggered by some 4.6 billion low-value items below €22 imported into the EU last year, equal to 12 million parcels per day, 91% of which came from China. The figure was double that in 2023.
It said the cheap imports pose unfair competition to EU sellers which follow the rules while the large number of packages being shipped has a negative impact on the environment and climate.
“We want to see a competitive e-commerce sector that keeps consumers safe, offers convenient products, and is respectful of the environment,” EU tech chief Henna Virkkunnen said in a statement.
Shein said it would engage with the consumer agencies and the Commission. “We share the CPC Network’s goal of ensuring European consumers can shop online with peace of mind, and we intend to work closely with the CPC Network and the Commission to address any concerns,” a spokesperson said.
Temu did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Very Group has a new bank to operate its customer loan portfolio. The digital fashion/lifestyle retailer has appointed NatWest to run the securitisation of its buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) customer loans.
It replaces HSBC that had run the group’s £1.8 billion portfolio for about 10 years, reported The Times. The report said HSBC has been replaced after putting the owning Barclay family’s logistics company into administration last year while also ordered the sale of other assets owned by the Barclay family.
The bank appointed restructuring advisers to handle the insolvency of Logistics Group Limited last year to seek payment on debt of £143.5 million.
Very’s finance arm offers its BNPL service and accounts for around 90% of sales made through customer loans. The group repackages the loans into a securitisation facility that has been running for more than 20 years.
The BNPL service would have helped the Very Group enjoy “strong” Christmas trading growth at its key retail operation, “driven by exceptional sales in [the] Home and Toys, Gifts & Beauty categories”.
In the seven weeks to 27 December, Very UK delivering retail sales growth of 2.3% year-on-year, “supporting group retail sales growth of 0.5%”. Its standout categories in the festive period were Home (up 15%) and Toys, Gifts & Beauty (up 7.3%). Fashion & Sports saw less impressive 2.9% growth but the category rose 11.2% excluding Nike. Menswear was a strong category within Fashion & Sports.
A 200th anniversary deserves a major statement and Clarks has made just that. The UK’s heritage footwear business marks the major milestone of shoemaking heritage with a documentary film, ‘From Somerset to the World’.
Clarks collaborator Liam Gallagher
The documentary celebrates the brand’s journey from humble beginnings in 1825 in Street, Somerset, “to becoming one of the most recognised and loved footwear brands in the world”.
Narrated by Yasiin Bey, aka Mos Def, the American rapper and actor, and directed by Set Free Richardson, the film highlights Clarks’ “evolution, cultural relevance, and global impact”.
It interviews a host of celebrities and influencers about their associations with the brand including musicians Liam Gallagher, Big Youth, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, singer Lila Ike, DJ/presenter Becca Dudley, British-Jamaican designer Martine Rose, Dutch designer Danielle Cathari, and Jamaican former footballer Allan ‘Skill’ Cole.
Gallagher, who is due to launch his second collaboration with Clarks this year, reflects: “My earliest memories of Clarks, is probably when I’ve gone to school… because everyone was wearing them, they were the all the rage back then. I wore Clarks all the way through the ‘90s, got lots of memories… I don’t think there is any other brand for me, really… I find it hard to even look at other brands… Clarks have never let me down.”
Cathari also shares her perspective in the film: “Clarks introduced me to footwear outside of sneakers… What I think Clarks represents for women today is versatility. You know, the little black dress is to apparel what Clarks is to footwear.”
The documentary is now available to watch globally on the Clarks and Clarks Originals Instagram channels @ClarksShoes and @ClarksOriginals.
Entertainment8 years ago