The FGB Digest brings you the latest news on the world’s fastest growing direct-to-consumer and challenger brands. In today’s edition: Atterley raises £400k for scalable international growth; Beam raises to grow in five key markets; and Stitch Fix moving focus of operations from California.

Atterley raises £400k for scalable international growth

Atterley, a marketplace for independent fashion retailers, has raised £400k on Crowdcube. On the platform, boutiques can upload their stock quickly by API and sell online to a global customer base who enjoy Atterley’s diverse brand mix and excellent customer service. 

Total transactions for the business grew 100% in 2018 & 2019. Atterley is now raising to develop systems and make key hires. Atterley helps to solve the macro-environmental challenges that independent boutiques are facing in lower footfall, rising operational costs, lack of resource & insufficient budget to compete online. Marketplace sites accounted for 58% of online transactions worldwide in 2019.

The business has a diverse network of 250+ boutiques in 19 countries, shipping to 2600 customers on average each month. There is a catalogue of 2,800 brands across mens and womenswear, with 38% of sales from outside the UK and 15% to the US in 2019. What’s more, the brand has seen strong performance during COVID 19, with orders up 254% YoY.

The plan is to refine their technology stack and increase the team to create a strong foundation for scalable international growth.

Beam raises to grow in five key markets

Beam, a Singapore-headquartered micro mobility firm that offers shared e-scooters, has raised USD$26m in a new financing round as it looks to expand its footprint in Korea, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand and Taiwan.

Sequoia India and Hana Ventures led the two-and-a-half-year-old startup’s Series A financing round, while several more investors from the Asia Pacific region participated. The startup has raised USD$32.4m to date. 

Electric and gasoline scooters have become popular in several Asian nations and elsewhere as people look for alternative transportation mediums to move around faster and at less cost.

While these vehicles make inroads into various markets, it’s also not uncommon to find these scooters abandoned carelessly in the streets. Beam said unlike other startups, it incentivises its riders through in-app offers to park the scooters at predetermined spots.

“I’m really excited about our new technology and its ability to reduce the problems associated with randomly scattered scooters around a city. This helps us to further improve our industry-leading vehicle retention rates, reduce operational costs and, most importantly, benefits communities by keeping city streets neater,” said Beam co-founder and chief executive Alan Jiang.

Stitch Fix moving focus of operations from California

Stitch Fix has said it plans to cut up to 1,400 jobs in California and invest in other US states where the apparel seller would offer new roles to all those affected.

The San Francisco-based company said it was getting increasingly expensive to operate in California and plans to hire about 2,000 stylists in other lower-cost locations such as Dallas, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Austin, Texas.

The strategic move is not related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the company added. Stitch Fix, which uses algorithms and experts to ship personalised clothing selections to clients, currently employs about 5,100 stylists. Chief Executive Officer Katrina Lake said in a statement that the decision was “the right thing to do” for the business.

“All of our California-based stylists will be offered the opportunity to relocate to the new roles in other states,” Lake said, adding that the apparel seller would provide financial help to the stylists, including severance payments, bonuses, and extended healthcare.

Want this in your Inbox? Sign up to our newsletter here!