Etsy to acquire global fashion resale marketplace Depop

JUN 02, 2021

BY BALDERTON

Etsy, which operates two-sided online marketplaces that connect millions of passionate and creative buyers and sellers around the world, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Depop for $1.625 billion.

Following the closing of the transaction, Depop will continue to be headquartered in London, England and operate as a standalone marketplace run by its existing leadership team.

Founded in 2011, Depop is a community-powered marketplace to buy and sell unique fashion, with a mission to build the world’s most diverse and progressive home of fashion.

Balderton first invested as part of Depop’s seed round in 2012, just as the app was being tested in the Italian market. At the time Balderton didn’t do many seed-stage investments, but our investment committee had such conviction in the concept and the founding team that we made a rare exception. 

We’re on an incredible journey building Depop into a place where the next generation comes to explore unique fashion and be part of a community that’s changing the way we shop.

Depop’s CEO Maria Raga

Depop’s CEO Maria Raga

We are simply thrilled to be adding Depop—what we believe to be the resale home for Gen Z consumers—to the Etsy family. Depop is a vibrant, two-sided marketplace with a passionate community, a highly differentiated offering of unique items, and we believe significant potential to further scale.

Josh Silverman, Etsy, Inc. CEO

Our community is made up of people who are creating a new fashion system by establishing new trends and making new from old. They come to Depop for the clothes, but stay for the culture. We'll now take an exciting leap forward as part of the Etsy family, benefiting from Josh’s and his team’s expertise, and the resources of a much larger company whose values are so aligned with ours here at Depop.

Depop’s CEO Maria Raga

Maria Raga speaks at the Balderton Collective CEO Retreat, 2018

Starting first in the U.K. and moving into the U.S. and Australia, Depop now has a community of approximately 30 million registered users across nearly 150 countries. With 4 million active buyers and had 2 million active sellers in 2020. 

Depop’s 2020 gross merchandise sales (GMS) and revenue were approximately $650 million and $70 million, respectively, each increasing over 100% year-over-year. Depop’s GMS grew at a compounded annual growth rate of nearly 80% from 2017-2020.

The second-hand market is also projected to grow at a 39% CAGR from 2019-2024 in the United States, reaching $64 billion, and to grow to twice the size of fast fashion on a global basis.

 

Depop’s world-class management team and employees have done a fantastic job nurturing this community and driving organic, authentic growth in a way that aligns well with Etsy’s DNA and mission of Keeping Commerce Human. We see significant opportunities for shared expertise and growth synergies across what will now be a tremendous ‘house of brands’ portfolio of individually distinct, and very special, ecommerce brands

Josh Silverman, Etsy, Inc. CEO

Depop is a truly exceptional company. It’s a shining example of how great businesses can succeed by obsessively focussing on their community, of how generational shifts create new opportunities in previously competitive categories, and on how having a truly values-driven brand is worth more than any amount of performance marketing.

James Wise, Partner, Balderton Capital

Read the full Press Release here. 

Read the story on the FT here.

An interview with Maria Raga of Depop

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Suranga Chandratillake sat down with Maria Raga, CEO of Depop at the Balderton Collective CEO Retreat, May 2018

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