Seed round backed by Lazada Co-founder Tim Rath and social entrepreneur John Wood.
Leading resale platform for designer kidswear plans international expansion.
Pioneering children’s designer clothing resale platform, Retykle, has successfully closed its latest round of seed funding, demonstrating its unique value proposition as an e-commerce platform that gives investors access to the growth of sustainable consumption and the circular economy in Asia.
A consortium of high-profile angel investors – including Lazada Co-founder Tim Rath and serial social entrepreneur John Wood – have backed Founder Sarah Garner’s vision of bringing sustainability to the vast and untapped kidswear market.
Garner and her team’s relentless focus on creating a user-first experience has ensured a high organic and viral adoption, which Retykle aims to replicate in other markets, starting with Singapore and Australia. “We’ve focused on the customer experience to cultivate a love for, and habit around, using the platform to buy and sell,” says Garner.
“That leads to sticky customers with frequent purchases and sustained customer lifetime value. I couldn’t be more excited for our future ahead, and I’m grateful to our incredible investors who share our vision for bringing the US $200B children’s fashion market into the circular economy.”
Funds raised will enable Retykle to accelerate growth and expand beyond its home market of Hong Kong. The capital will be used for technology development, including hiring engineers to build out personalisation, a peer-to-peer marketplace and mechanisms to make it even easier for brands to participate directly on the platform.
Retykle business has continued to grow in spite of the pandemic, nearly doubling online revenue during this time. “I created Retykle to offer parents the highest quality kids wear for a fraction of the price with a great customer experience, coupled with the clear and compelling environmental benefit”, says Garner. “Our community is creating an impact and a movement around a collective sharing economy which promotes circularity benefitting our children’s future.”
John Wood, who founded Room To Read and Powered By Purpose and was an early backer of leading sustainability platform Green Monday, explains: “The businesses best set up for long-term success are those that pursue purpose in addition to profit. Retykle’s model is great for the planet and for family finances so I’m proud to be an investor as well as a loyal customer”.
Sustainability champion and longtime Retykle supporter Denise Ho agrees, “I’m a true believer in the second-hand market and its potential. At the end of the day, it just makes sense to protect our resources and limit waste.”
About Retykle
Founded by luxury fashion industry veteran Sarah Garner, Retykle is an online consignment platform that enables parents to turn their children’s outgrown designer clothing into cash, effectively closing the loop on the temporary use fashion cycle. Buyers can browse thousands of gently-used and new past-season items from over 2,000 leading children’s designer clothing brands, saving 50-90 per cent off original retail prices.
Since its launch in 2016, Retykle has recirculated over 150,000 items, with tens of thousands of parents joining the platform to build a sharing economy online, saving temporary use clothing from being sent to landfill.
Information, media enquiries and interview requests:
- Sarah Garner, Founder: sarah.garner@retykle.com +852 3 5946 533.
- Armelle Liverton, Communications Director: armelle.liverton@retykle.com
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