BurdaPrincipal Investments (BPI), the international growth capital provider of media and technology company Hubert Burda Media, is participating in Aleph Alpha’s Series B financing round.
Due to the coronavirus restrictions, we are currently spending a lot of time at home. What could be better than finally clearing the mess in our wardrobes? As a lot of Germans are currently shrinking their closet, Burda’s portfolio company and online platform for second-hand fashion Vinted (in Germany known as Kleiderkreisel) is recording an enormous increase in users. Also, considerably more articles are being put online.
28-million-community
BurdaPrincipal Investments' portfolio currently comprises 17 companies, all of which are unique. One of these is the international online platform for second-hand fashion Vinted, in which Burda has been involved since 2015. In total, the Vinted community has over 28 million members and operates in 12 markets: England, France, Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, the USA, Spain, Austria, Luxembourg, Belgium ,and the Netherlands. Vinted CEO Thomas Plantenga explains in an interview what makes the company and the collaboration with Burda so special.
Please describe your business – if possible – in three sentences.
Vinted is the largest online C2C marketplace in Europe dedicated to second-hand fashion. We help 28 million members to sell and buy second-hand clothes and accessories from each other, making shopping a mobile and social experience. We are an European start-up headquartered in Vilnius, with offices in Berlin, Prague and Warsaw and over 350 employees.
When and why did you join Vinted?
I joined Vinted in 2016, when asked to help the company face difficult times. I felt useful and decided to stay with the teams.
What makes your company unique?
Our mission to make second-hand the first choice is unique. And we now are the first unicorn of Lithuania.
How do you benefit from Burda as an investor?
Burda gave us the freedom to experiment in difficult times, which allowed us to survive.
What are your company’s goals for the future?
Vinted is a tech and digital company, with a clear purpose and expertise. If we look at our mission which is to make second-hand fashion the first choice worldwide, there is still an immense potential for growth. To achieve this, we will continue to grow in existing and new markets.
