H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB said it now owns a majority stake in online second-hand retailer Sellpy after a series of investments as part of the group's efforts to establish itself as a sustainable fashion brand.
H&M Group said that the investment will support Sellpy's international expansion, starting with Germany, and advance the group's circular fashion strategy, which offers customers the option to extend the life of their products through resale. The Stockholm-based Sellpy offers a digital platform for customers to give away their old clothes for reuse.
"We keep investing in Sellpy because we strongly believe in the company and the founders. Sellpy has a unique circular business model, which perfectly aligns with H&M Group's vision to become fully circular," CO:LAB head Nanna Andersen said in a statement.
The fashion retailer said that its recent investment and purchase of secondaries has increased its stake in Sellpy to approximately 70% from a minority stake.
The company said, through its investment arm CO:LAB, it recently bought secondaries for 92 million Swedish kronor, with a follow-on investment of 40 million kronor. In addition, H&M Group will invest an additional 60 million kronor, in two different installments, within a few years, following which it will only approximate 74% stake in Sellpy.
Prior to recent investments, H&M Group through CO:LAB had pumped 50 million kronor in Sellpy since 2015.
As of Oct. 10, US$1 was equivalent to 9.85 Swedish kronor.
