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South Korea’s Naver to buy U.S. fashion app Poshmark in USD 1.6 billion deal

Written by Nikkei Asia Published on   2 mins read

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Deal allows expansion into North America’s e-commerce market.

Naver will buy U.S. fashion e-commerce platform Poshmark in a deal worth USD 1.6 billion, the South Korean tech company said Tuesday, marking its biggest acquisition ever.

The search engine operator will purchase all Poshmark shares at USD 17.90 each, a 15% premium over Monday’s closing price of USD 15.57. The deal will be executed through a special purpose company established by Naver and will be completed during the January-March period of next year.

“We’re drawing a big picture for community commerce, a new retail approach that only Naver can realize on the global market,” Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon said.

Poshmark is a consumer-to-consumer fashion marketplace with 5.6 million registered sellers and 37 million users. The app takes a percentage cut of each transaction.

Sellers host virtual “closets” on Poshmark where they post pictures of the clothing on offer. The app is also home to influencers with more than 1 million followers, and this integration of social media and e-commerce has attracted young users.

Poshmark’s rivals include Japanese flea market platform Mercari.

Naver also operates an online mall that hosts individual vendors and small businesses. The South Korean company sees growth in sales from creators, as well as in person-to-person secondhand resales.

Naver also launched the Smart Store platform, where individuals can easily open online shops, in Japan and Europe. Acquiring Poshmark will open the door to building an e-commerce platform in North America.

Poshmark, established in 2011, listed on Nasdaq on January 2021. But since its float, the stock has tumbled 85%.

This article first appeared on Nikkei Asia. It has been republished here as part of 36Kr’s ongoing partnership with Nikkei.

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