Vinted the online marketplace and app that lets users sell, buy and swap their second-hand clothes just closed a funding round of €250 million which brings the company’s total value to €3.5 billion.
Led by EQT Growth and participation from Accel, Burda Principal Investments, Insight Partners, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Sprints Capital, it marks a significant achievement for a start-up that in 2019 was still valued at €1 billion.
It’s also a sign that the pandemic has had an enormous effect on the way we buy and sell, proving that the Vinted model is working. As people had more time to declutter their homes, they’ve been selling more of their used items online. It’s a move that has benefitted eBay in 2020 too.
Vinted was founded in 2008 in Lithuania but now has operations across 13 markets including France, Germany, the US and UK.
With more than 45 million users globally, it’s got some significant purchasing and trading power.
App users don’t pay fees for listing items but Vinted does take a cut of between 3% to 8% depending on item cost.
The company has reiterated that it does not plan to move into any other goods apart from fashion and home items. Compared to eBay, it also has no plans to add professional sellers to its platform.
What’s more, the group is working on a way for sellers to donate some of their proceeds to a charity of their choice, keeping in line with its sustainability ethos.
“Vinted is transforming the second-hand fashion market across Europe through their customer-centric approach and extraordinary execution,” Carolina Brochado, EQT Growth Partner, said in a statement.
“Vinted is the perfect example of EQT Growth’s strategy of backing fast-growing European tech champions that tap into several macro trends, such as the increasing consumer demand for sustainability and continued penetration of online channels within fashion. We’re immensely proud and excited to be supporting Thomas and the Vinted team and we cannot wait to work together to further unlock the market for circular fashion.”
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