Fast fashion label considering PE investment for overseas growth
The founder of online fashion label WantThatTrend.com has revealed she is ready to consider private equity investment to help take the £7m turnover business to the next level as it targets international markets.
Victoria Molyneux, 29, set up the women’s clothing line from her bedroom two years ago with an initial investment of just £1,000.
As the Stockport company celebrates two years in business, it has grown from being a one-woman operation to a team of 33 staff.
It has turned over more than £14m in its first two years of business and has amassed a social media community of around 1.5m dedicated fans.
Speaking to an audience of 100 people at TheBusinessDesk’s women’s business lunch at Mr Coopers, supported by law firm JMW, she revealed that the company already had customers in the US and that she thought there was real demand to grow the business over the pond.
“We have been approached a few times in the past by funders but back then the time was just not right. Now, I think we could do with some investment to help our growth overseas – starting with the US. But it is as much about the support and advice that investment would bring as it is about the money,” she said.
To view a gallery of images from the event, click here.
Despite WantThatTrend.com’s rapid growth, Molyneux still finds time to model all of the company’s clothes, posting selfies of what the dresses look like in ‘real life’ on social media – it’s a strategy that has proven to be a point of difference and a major driver of sales – so she was able to give the audience a few tips for the ‘perfect selfie’.
On a more serious note, she also talked to the audience about some of the personal sacrifices she’s had to make as a result of the company’s rapid success and the impact it has had on some of her friendships.
“Some people do think you have changed as a person and that you don’t want to see them anymore because you are ‘successful’. But the truth is you’re just very, very busy trying to keep on top of it all,” she said.
She also shared the latest updates on the company’s new Katy Piper collection which launched in April and how, after close to a year of working on the project together, she has become close friends with the author, TV presenter and charity campaigner.
“Katie fits our demographic perfectly and yes, she really does design all of the outfits herself – in fact some of her initial early designs were a bit revealing! She was really involved in the whole thing and really enjoyed it,” she said.
More Katie Piper collections are in the pipeline too – with a ‘back to work’ collection expected land after the summer, as well as a glitzy Christmas collection.
To view a gallery of images from the event, click here.
TheBusinessDesk’s next women’s business lunch will take place on July 14, when we will be joined by guest speaker Vicky Collins the founder of Boodles Tennis at the Mere.
Our lunch is just before the Wimbledon finals weekend so as well as finding out about the challenges of running a ‘lumpy’ business and setting up a company in the Middle East, expect some lighthearted anecdotes about some of the professional players Vicky has employed over the years. Full details will be released soon.
