Fashion app Depop grabs $62m from Airbnb and Uber investor
British fashion marketplace app Depop has today closed a series C funding round at $62m (£48.8m), led by US venture capital stalwart General Atlantic.
Existing investors HZ Holtzbrinck Ventures, Balderton Capital, Creandum, Octopus Ventures and Tempocap also participated in the round, alongside Klarna founder Sebastian Siemiatkowski.
Depop said it will use the funding to expand internationally, invest in product development and grow its London-based engineering team.
The app, which has more than 13m users globally, allows users to buy and re-sell clothes and accessories. Businesses can also distribute through the marketplace, reaching Depop customers who are almost all under the age of 26.
“The next generation of young people want an experience the fashion industry is struggling to provide,” said Depop chief executive Maria Raga.
“They want authenticity and to set their own trends. They’re influenced by real people. They want choice and individuality, the ability to buy on demand and sell on with ease. At the same time, they want to reduce waste. Depop is set up to meet these changing demands.”
Depop recently opened two physical stores in Los Angeles and New York to capitalise on its growth, as sales in the US rose 300 per cent in the last two years.
“Social shopping, independent brands and resale are gaining popularity around the world, but particularly in the US where Generation Z will be the largest consumer group by 2020,” Raga added.
“Over the past 18 months, our growth in the US has been almost entirely organic, driven by the community of creative young people on Depop.”
Depop’s leading investor General Atlantic has made a name for itself in backing the most promising and successful tech companies around the world. It has funded the likes of Slack, Snap and Dropbox, and in the UK has backed fintech firm Greensill.
“Technology continues to transform the retail landscape around the world and we are incredibly excited to be investing in Depop as it looks to capture the huge opportunity ahead of it,” said Melis Kahya, General Atlantic’s head of consumer in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
“The organic growth generated in recent years is a testament to the impact they are having and we look forward to working with the team to further accelerate the business.”