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.
Private equity firm KKR & Co will invest $95 million in Indian omnichannel eyewear retailer, Lenskart, as part of a broader, $250 to $300 million capital-raising round, The Economic Times reports.
Lenskart, founded in 2010, has around 730 stores in 175 cities across India and is said to be eyeing Singapore, the Middle East and United States for international expansion.
The retailer has previously raised $459 million over nine rounds from 12 investors, the last of which included Kedaara Capital and SoftBank Vision Fund II in 2019.
Though e-commerce reshaped retailing in the US and Europe even before the pandemic, a confluence of economic, financial and logistical circumstance kept the South American nation insulated from the trend until later.
This week’s round-up of global markets fashion business news also features Korean shopping app Ably, Kenya’s second-hand clothing trade and the EU’s bid to curb forced labour in Chinese cotton.
From Viviano Sue to Soshi Otsuki, a new generation of Tokyo-based designers are preparing to make their international breakthrough.
This week’s round-up of global markets fashion business news also features Latin American mall giants, Nigerian craft entrepreneurs and the mixed picture of China’s luxury market.