Rocket Internet and its founders the Samwer Brothers are still in the expansion mode. They have just launched another site that will take on the luxury goods industry. It is called Emeza and pronounced Amaze-ah. The group now has significant presence in fashion, food, mobile payments and more. It is now truly an e-commerce empire. The new site is an offshoot of Rocket’s European fashion portal, Zalando. However it was surprising for the industry that they have decided to move into the luxury segment at this point in time when the economic climate is very dull and uncertain in Europe. They have been encouraged by the healthy results of Net-a-Porter and want to follow in their footsteps.
The Prices On the New Site Will Go Beyond $1,000
The new site will offer premium brands and high end clothing and accessories. The price band in which they will operate will be high with some of the articles costing as much as €1,000 ($1,300). The site has already gone live in Germany. Rocket was in the news recently when fashion industry conglomerate PPR invested €10 million ($13 million) in Lamoda and Dafiti. It was their first investor from the fashion industry.PPR owns several iconic luxury goods brands like Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Alexander McQueen. A spokesperson representing the new site Emeza explained that the current version of the site is a rough beta but already has about 30 designers. The full version is expected to be launched sometime in March or April with many more labels and designers.
Emeza is Following in Net-a-Porter’s Footsteps
This new initiative from the Rocket stable is not linked with PPR in any way. However their brands may appear on the site at a future date. The group is already assessing the rest of the European market for possible expansion. Despite the economic slump in Europe the luxury market is doing pretty well. Net-a-Porter, whom Emeza hopes to follow, achieved a 43% growth in profits last year. And they did it on a fairly large base hitting the $2 billion mark. Rocket has studied their model closely and hopes to replicate it. They are also working on creating a similar shopping experience and compete with the leader. Rocket now has a large portfolio and they are hopeful that this initiative will be more successful than the others.
Via: techcrunch
