Luxury department store Rackhams has returned to British shopping as an online-only department store, under new ownership.
The independently-owned retailer says to will offer shoppers a curated mix of designer brands, boutique labels and everyday essentials across fashion, beauty, home and garden. The company offers free delivery on every order.
Rackhams is built as a marketplace-only business, with the experience “designed to feel like a single, unified store, from product discovery and checkout to returns and support”, the business said.
The marketplace runs on “simple, transparent terms for partners,” with no hidden fees or onboarding charges.
Since its soft launch, Rackhams has reported a “fast-growing customer base” as well as “strong month-on-month growth”.
Rackhams CEO Mark Jordan said: “At Rackhams, our marketplace-first approach is not a side project, it is the business.
“Because of that, we put equal weight on the experience for both our customers and our partners. Unlike bolt-on marketplaces, which rarely command the time and resources needed to deliver real pre- and post-sales support, we are built from the ground up to make that support central.”
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He continued: “That’s why we can promise an exceptional experience at every stage.
“Having previously built an online retail business to more than £100 million in annual turnover, I wanted to take those lessons in scaling and apply them to a new kind of department store.”
Rackhams sales director Will Spencer added: “Since our soft launch we’ve been delighted with the momentum Rackhams has built.
“We’ve already welcomed over 600 partners and shipped tens of thousands of orders in less than a year, and we fully expect this growth to accelerate as we increase our presence within the market.”
The news comes as many UK retailers continue to embrace marketplace models. In July, B&Q trialled a marketplace click-and-collect service for shoppers under a UK first.
BoohooMan also recently launched an online marketplace with more than 500 brands.
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