Luxury online fashion marketplace and technology platform Farfetch sells products from over 700 designer global boutiques and brands. Founded in 2007 by Portuguese entrepreneur José Neves with headquarters in London, the platform has grown to operate offices in 11 cities and offer mobile apps and dedicated websites in 10 languages. It employs over 3,000 staff. Farfetch has established itself as a technological powerhouse. In 2017, it launched a beta version of its augmented retail store in two locations, partnering with Browns in London and Thom Browne in New York. The store features RFID-enabled racks to populate an online wish list, digital mirrors and facial recognition to create a single view of the customer. Farfetch differentiates itself from rivals Yoox Net-a-Porter and Matchesfashion by positioning itself as a technology company rather than a retailer, as it does not hold any of its own stock. Instead, Farfetch connects bricks-and-mortar stores with little online presence to global customers, leveraging its technology to help day-to-day operations.
Retailer equity valuations have been on a rollercoaster ride over the past year, amid significant divergence in the performance of individual companies.
Traditional retailers’ fortune have had a bruising year but a number of online retail entrepreneurs have climbed or entered The Sunday Times Rich List for the first time.
Farfetch reported strong growth in both revenues and gross merchandise values in what the luxury specialist’s boss called a “tremendous start to 2021”.
Farfetch has achieved its first-ever positive EBITDA despite a tough year for fashion retailers.
Just a few months before Marks & Spencer reported its first loss as a public company, Farfetch disclosed a quarterly loss of a much greater magnitude than M&S’ £88m.
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