Online fashion retailer Zalando has acquired a majority stake in luxury and streetwear media and ecommerce brand Highsnobiety in a bid to enhance its creative strategy. Highsnobiety Founder and CEO David Fischer will retain a minority stake in the media brand.
The deal between the two Berlin-headquartered companies combines Highsnobiety’s cultural reach, fashion expertise and ability to craft engaging storytelling with Zalando’s style network, ecommerce capabilities and operational efficiency. Through the acquisition of Highsnobiety, Zalando hopes to cultivate a position as the destination for streetwear, new luxury and fashion among younger generations of style-centric consumers.
In May, Highsnobiety expanded its Highsnobiety GATEZERO airport retail concept through a partnership with travel retailer Gebrüder Heinemann to focus on the needs of Gen Z and Gen Y travelers.
“Highsnobiety has mastered the art of turning stories into products and products into stories,” said Fischer in a statement. “I am very excited to bring our capabilities to Zalando’s commitment toward fashion inspiration and together reimagine the future of content and commerce. Equally, I am thrilled to tap into Zalando’s unrivaled expertise in scaling ecommerce platforms and bring my lifetime’s passion work to the next level.”
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As part of the deal, for which financial details were not released, Zalando and Highsnobiety’s editorial, publishing arm and agency businesses will maintain independent operations. The fully independent editorial component of Highsnobiety will continue to be led by managing directors Fischer and Jürgen Hopfgartner. While Highsnobiety retained its editorial independence, the company will consult with Zalando regarding the online retail platform’s creative strategy.
“Both of our companies share a passion for building strong brand partnerships and enabling brands to inspire audiences with their products and stories,” said David Schneider, Zalando Founder and Co-CEO in a statement. “Partnering with Highsnobiety will allow us to execute much faster on our ambition to offer the most relevant and engaging — as well as convenient — shopping experience to our customers. I’m excited to see our joint vision materialize and to shape the future of fashion content in commerce together.”
