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Philippe von Borries & Justin Stefano

Co-Founders, Refinery 29

The digital media upstarts have grown what began as a simple local guide into a rapidly growing next generation fashion media company.

Biography

Co-founders of Refinery 29, an online fashion media and e-commerce company, Philippe Von Borries and Justin Stefano are widely regarded as digital pioneers, credited with being some of the first to converge content, community and commerce. Refinery 29 acquired start-up Socialbomb in May 2013 and was valued at $100 million later that year. In July 2013, a revamped website was unveiled featuring a new lifestyle based layout with added navigation and "shop it now" buttons. The site is built on underlying technology that reads user preferences and helps personalise content. Refinery29 had over 450 employees globally in 2017, with offices in London, LA and Berlin. In 2016, the company announced it had raised $45 million in a funding round led by Turner. As of 2017, it reached an audience of over 500 million globally across platforms.

Finance graduates from New York University and Columbia University respectively, Philippe and Justin launched the website in 2004 as a localised New York guide for independent boutiques and shops. Raising initial capital from retailer Steven Alan, owner of a Showroom boutique they had featured in their guide, the pair quickly created an online marketplace for New York based stores such as Atelier, Number Nine and In God We Trust. Strong advertising revenue bolstered the sites growth in the early years, while continued focus on creating unique editorial content with an emphasis on style, community and trending stories helped grow the sites popularity. In 2010, the duo also introduced vouchers and locally focused flash coupon sales.

Career

Refinery29

Refinery29

Co-Founders

2006 - Present

New York, United States

Education

New York University

New York University

Columbia University

Columbia University

Vital Statistics

Nationality

United States

Location
United States
Member since
2013

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What is The BoF 500?

The people shaping the global fashion industry, curated by the editors of The Business of Fashion, based on nominations and on-the-ground intelligence from around the world.