Social shopping app Depop has secured $20 million (£14.1 million) in series B funding to accelerate its global expansion.
Depop, which currently boasts over eight million users and posted gross merchandise volumes of $230 million (£163.1 million) last year, said the funds would be used for “global growth of the platform, particularly in the US”.
It saw revenue growth of 130 per cent in the US over the last year, though an exact figure was not disclosed.
“Now is the right time for this investment, because we want to expand in the US, which is a big market for us,” Depop founder Simon Beckerman said.
According to its chief executive Maria Raga, Depop plans to open “bricks and mortar beta spaces”, allowing the hybrid social media/retail app to experiment with physical formats.
The funding was led by London-based venture capital firm Octopus Ventures, with further capital from TempoCap.
They will join existing investors including Balderton, HV Holtzbrinck Ventures, H-FARM, Creandum, and Lumar.
Octopus Ventures’ Rebecca Hunt, who will be joining Depop’s board, said: “We are excited to be supporting Depop on their next phase of growth as they continue to roll out across the US.
“The company has built a large, engaged and loyal user base amongst predominantly creative young people. Depop provides users with a selling and social platform and a global pool of buyers to leverage their unique community and inventory, generate their own brands and build revenue channels.
“This taps into a key trend in retail for millennials, and we are looking forward to seeing further growth of the business over the coming years, powered by an exceptional team.”
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