Dubai-based online marketplace The Luxury Closet gets $8.7m funding

Dubai-based luxury resale marketplace The Luxury Closet has closed an $8.7m growth round of funding, it announced on Sunday.

The financing was led by venture capital firm Middle East Venture Partners (MEVP), along with participation from Wamda Capital, Precinct Partners, Tech Invest Com, Saned and Equitrust.

The company previously closed a $7.8m series B funding round led by Wamda along with MEVP, Equitrust, Saned and Arzan Venture Capital in 2016.

Read more: Online marketplace The Luxury Closet closes $7.8m series B round

The Luxury Closet, set up in 2012, focuses on the pre-owned luxury goods segment, with over 60 per cent of sales coming from brands like Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Rolex that don’t discount their merchandise.

Offering pre-owned items at a discount averaging 60 per cent from retail, the company currently has a catalogue of 20,000 products and is adding products worth over $5m every month, it said in a statement.

In addition to individual sellers, several companies have also started joining the marketplace.

The platform “invests heavily” in authenticating product quality, the statement added.

With the new funding, the company plans to expand its supply from exclusive sellers in the Middle East and to build out its network of buyers worldwide.

“We see a massive wave building up in how consumers perceive and purchase luxury, one that is going to change the luxury industry forever,” said CEO and founder Kunal Kapoor.

MEVP, the largest VC firm in the MENA region, received an investment from Dubai businessman Mohamed Alabbar last year and has since then also invested in Turkish fashion retailer Modacruz.

Modacruz, a mobile marketplace which deals with second-hand womens’ fashion items in Turkey, raised $2m in a series B investment round led by MEVP.

Read more: Alabbar-backed VC fund MEVP invests in Turkish fashion retailer Modacruz

Also read: Dubai’s Alabbar acquires ‘large’ stake in regional VC fund MEVP

MEVP’s investment comes in line with Alabbar’s focus on fashion e-commerce in the region.

In 2016, the businessman signed a $138.5m joint venture deal with international online luxury fashion retailer Yoox Net-A-Porter (YNAP) to set up an online luxury retail business in the Middle East.

Read more: Dubai’s Alabbar in $138.5m JV deal with luxury e-retailer Yoox Net-A-Porter