The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
SAN FRANCISCO, United States — EBay Inc. plans to select a buyer for its enterprise division by July 1, when the e-commerce company officially splits off its PayPal division, people familiar with the matter said.
Private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners is one of the remaining bidders, said the people, who asked not to be named because the negotiations are private. A sale could value the unit between $1 billion and $1.5 billion, the people said.
EBay announced in January it would sell or conduct an initial public offering for the unit. The enterprise business helps retailers develop and run online shopping sites. EBay Chief Executive Officer John Donahoe said then that the unit had “limited synergies” with either EBay’s marketplace business or PayPal.
“We’re exploring strategic alternatives,” EBay spokeswoman Johnna Hoff said without elaborating. A spokeswoman for TH Lee declined to comment.
ADVERTISEMENT
EBay Enterprise, previously called GSI Commerce, helps retailers sell clothing, sporting goods, toys and other products online by providing software, customer service and a network of warehouses and delivery partners that can reach 60 countries. EBay acquired GSI in 2011 for about $2 billion in an attempt to catch up to rival Amazon.com Inc.’s vast distribution network.
Like EBay’s online marketplace business, EBay Enterprise sales growth has lagged overall e-commerce. The segment had first quarter sales of $288 million, up 7 percent from the same period a year earlier.
PayPal will begin trading as a separate public company, trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market as PYPL, on July 1.
By Alex Sherman, Emily Chang and David Carey; with assistance from Devin Banerjee and Spencer Soper. Editors: Mohammed Hadi, Tony Robinson.
Brands are using them for design tasks, in their marketing, on their e-commerce sites and in augmented-reality experiences such as virtual try-on, with more applications still emerging.
Brands including LVMH’s Fred, TAG Heuer and Prada, whose lab-grown diamond supplier Snow speaks for the first time, have all unveiled products with man-made stones as they look to technology for new creative possibilities.
Social networks are being blamed for the worrying decline in young people’s mental health. Brands may not think about the matter much, but they’re part of the content stream that keeps them hooked.
After the bag initially proved popular with Gen-Z consumers, the brand used a mix of hard numbers and qualitative data – including “shopalongs” with young customers – to make the most of its accessory’s viral moment.