Following GOAT Group’s initial investment in the brand in 2021, the company is set to acquire streetwear-resale site Grailed. Grailed is set to operate under its own brand and integrate GOAT’s operations infrastructure, including shipping and payments. Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
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The peer-to-peer marketplace Grailed, founded by Arun Gupta, Julian Connor, and Jake Metzger in 2013, allows customers to buy and sell clothing online, with anything from vintage designer items to modern day streetwear. In the Bloomberg report, GOAT co-founder and CEO Eddy Lu acknowledges that Graileds unique offering includes vintage Coogi sweaters and rare Balenciaga jackets.
As of September 2021, Grailed announced that it had closed a USD 60 million Series B financing round led by the GOAT Group. In addition to Gucci CEO Marco Bizzarri, and other existing investors such as Thrive Capital and Index Ventures, other investors included the Pinault family’s holding company, Groupe Artémis. Bloomberg reports that Grailed wasn’t considering a sale at the time of the funding round.
GOAT Group executives explained that the company’s expansion into fashion and accessories is a natural progression, and that it is seeking further growth overseas after opening retail and warehouse facilities in Singapore, Tokyo, and Shenzhen, China in the past year. The apparel industry and expanding international markets are areas that Lu sees as opportunities for GOAT going forward. According to Lu, GOAT has seen continued growth across all of its businesses, especially apparel and accessories, which have doubled since last year.
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“We’re just getting started, we’re excited about all the potential opportunities we have. Our core market right now is the U.S. domestic sneaker market, but we see so much growth in international markets such as the Middle East, for example. Expanding internationally is a big growth driver for us, and we launched apparel, which is a huge compliment to sneakers.” Lu added.