IPO Zalando / Berlinstartup
Companies looking to go public face pressure to make themselves more attractive to potential shareholders and, naturally, areas in a business that do not work will be closed like Emeza and webshop Kiomithe Zalando shuts down luxury offshoot Emeza Kiomi. Thats it….
That’s something Berlin-based eCommerce giant Zalando is well aware of – as rumours of a potential IPO circulate.
Zalando’s first cut off is Emeza, an eCommerce site for luxury goods, which was launched early this year. The platform will be shut down over a period of time – in the future, Zalando itself will include a premium section to replace Emeza. So far, it’s not clear how many employees will be affected by the closure. What led to Emeza’s downfall remains up for debate – it could have been that the site didn’t achieve market traction fast enough. Shifting goals, first internationalisation, now profitability
The reorientation away from extra verticals and towards a wider range of brands makes Zalando more accessible and somewhat more tangible for potential investors. However, the company denies the rumours that a significant number of middle management have also left.
Overall, 2013 seems to have been a year of reflection for Zalando – there was less of a focus on expanding into new markets, meaning the company saved costs, and was finally able to reach profitability in its home regions and achieve impressive sales figures. At the same time, the business was confronted with serious allegations over sub-par working conditions in one of its logistics centres – it promised to look into the accusations.
Whether Zalando will really go public in the near future – as berlinstartup.de Berlinstartup has heard this week, Zalando was a portfolio business from Rocket Internet, it sold its shares in August this year. The decisions about the future of the eCommerce company now mostly rest in the hands of its largest shareholder Investment AB Kinnevik, which holds 38 per cent of shares. The Samwer brothers still own around 20 per cent via their investment arm, the European Founders Fund, while Asos cofounder Anders Holch Povlsen also holds a ten per cent cut of Zalando.
Keep goin.
comments