B2B eCommerce Platform Fashion Cloud Raises $26.6M – PYMNTS.com

B2B eCommerce platform Fashion Cloud has raised €25 million (about $26.6 million). 
The B2B software solution for the European fashion wholesale industry said in a Tuesday (Dec. 13) press release that it will use the new capital to accelerate its international expansion. 
“Brands and retailers want to be able to work together more easily and effectively,” Fashion Cloud Co-Founder Alies ter Kuile said in the release. “This investment enables Fashion Cloud to take the collaboration between stakeholders to the next level.” 
More than 600 brands and 20,000 retailers are using the company’s platform. Fashion Cloud was founded in 2015 and has seen accelerating growth over the last three years, according to the press release. 
The company said in the release that its software solves the problems of fragmentation and inefficiency in the fashion wholesale industry by delivering a set of solutions for fashion brands and retailers, covering content and data exchange as well as digital preorder and reorder. 
These solutions enable the two parties to “digitize everything” so they can better share marketing material and product data, optimize orders and inventory, and work together more efficiently, the release said. 
With the new capital and help from investors, Fashion Cloud will further develop its features that allow retailers to access marketing material and product data from brands, build out its automated reorder suggestions that ensure stores have the right amount and types of products at any given time, and enable brands to share their sustainability attributes, per the release. 
The fundraise was led by European specialist growth equity investor Verdane, whose expertise in the B2B software business, large international network and team of in-house specialists will further support Fashion Cloud, according to the press release. 
“Digitalization of fashion wholesale is crucial for efficient collaboration and trade, and ultimately to make the industry more economically and environmentally sustainable,” Verdane Principal Björn Beckman said in the release, pointing out the benefits it delivers to brands and retailers. “With the support and funding of Verdane, we’re confident that Fashion Cloud will cement their position as European market leaders.” 
As PYMNTS reported in January, Fashion Cloud saw a necessity for a model for data standards after the platform became aware of significant variations in what type of data was being provided. The firm decided that by optimizing the process, online merchants could collect clear-cut data. 
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