Chic by Choice (CBC), a European startup which resembles RentTheRunway, has acquired its German competitor La Remia. Terms were undisclosed.
Anna Mangold and Claudia von Boeselager, the founders of La Remia, will stay on board as advisors. CBC’s aim is to disrupt inventory management and better monetize brands’ and retailers’ excess inventory.
While resembling its US counter-part in that is works in luxury rentals, CBC (which now operates in major markets in Europe) partners with merchants and brands to rent out luxury fashion. It’s backed by Faber Ventures and Portugal Ventures, with seed funding of €500,000, but is now raising a Series A round.
Founders Filipa Neto and Lara Vidreiro think there’s a “huge opportunity to offer Yield Management Solutions for end of season stock that reshapes the retail industry and boosts retailer’s revenues as a smarter alternative to discounting or outlets”.
Neto told me that CBC has realized there is a problem with excessive inventory in fashion which is different from ‘in season stock’. But European consumers care less about in-season items than about beautiful clothes. So there is a big opportunity to go after the stock held by ‘out of season’ outlets.
La Remia was founded by Claudia Freifrau von Boeselager and Anna Mangold in 2013 and built out in Germany and neighboring countries. The Berlin-based start-up was financed by VC High-Tech Gründerfonds and two business angels.