eBay is continuing its focus on fashion with its recent agreement to acquire brand4friends, Germany's largest online shopping club, for an estimated $200 million.
The addition will help "strengthen eBay's position as a leading online fashion destination in Europe," the company notes, as an estimated 3.5 million people are part of brands4friends.
eBay currently generates more than $5.4 billion in sales every year on the sale of clothes, shoes and accessories, according to company reports. In recent months, the site has added features such as eBay Fashion, a shopping hub for clothing, shoes and accessories, and the Fashion Vault, in which designers and well-known brands offer their items at discounted prices. The marketplace also introduced an eBay Fashion mobile app earlier this year.
"With the acquisition of brands4friends, we will enter the online shopping-club market with an established and dynamic partner who has the experience, relations and passion to match our own ambition," says Doug McCallum, Senior Vice President for eBay in Europe. "We expect many eBay customers will enjoy great deals on international fashion brands by joining the brands4friends community."
Sergio Dias, chief executive officer of brands4friands, calls eBay the "perfect partner."
"We are able to bring our retail and brand competence and industry knowledge to eBay, and we can expect to benefit from eBay's traffic and e-commerce experience to accelerate the growth of our shopping community," he says.
The deal also includes brands4friends' equity interests in U.K. shopping club SecretSales.com and brands4friends.jp in Japan.
Auctiva staff writers constantly monitor trends and best practices of those selling on eBay and elsewhere online. They attend relevant training seminars and trade shows and regularly discuss the market with PowerSellers and other market experts.
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