M.Gemi Raises $18 Million In Series B Funding

BOSTON, Nov. 5, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Launched this past March, M.Gemi (mgemi.com), the direct-to-consumer luxury brand that unveils new, handcrafted Italian shoes every Monday, announces today the close of $18M Series B investment round. The new investment was led by Accel, with continued participation from all existing investors, including General Catalyst Partners, Forerunner Ventures and Breakaway Ventures. With the brand's prior round of fundraising, this brings M.Gemi's total funding to $32M.

M.Gemi is reinventing luxury shoes by partnering with Italy's most sought-after specialty factories to rapidly respond to client reactions with weekly adjustments to its supply chain. This modern approach enables the company to release new, limited-edition handcrafted styles at historically impossible prices every single Monday.

"The luxury category has sold at high price points with high margins for so long that it obscured the need to innovate," CEO Ben Fischman said. "We saw this void and set out to offer clients with a uniquely compelling way to satisfy her appetite for high-quality shoes."

M.Gemi's quality, prices and weekly releases have struck a chord with clients, leading to incredible repeat buying rates well above the company's own lofty expectations. The new growth capital investment will fuel overall company growth and be used to assist in building out the team, developing data-centric inventory management systems and investing in innovative marketing strategies.

"We are excited about our partnership with M.Gemi," said Harry Nelis, Partner at Accel, based in London. "The luxury market is prime for disruption and we believe the M.Gemi team has the experience and expertise to do it."

For additional information on M.Gemi and to shop the collection, visit www.mgemi.com.

ABOUT M.GEMI
M.Gemi was launched in March 2015 by Ben Fischman. Previously, Fischman was founder and CEO of RueLaLa, one of the earliest players in the digital private sale space, when he led the brand to acquisition by leading commerce and interactive marketing services provider GSI Commerce in 2009. Prior to launching RueLaLa, Fischman was the CEO of off-price e-commerce marketplace SmartBargains.com and founder of LIDS Corporation.

With more than 50 years of experience in fashion, business, design and technology, the M.Gemi team, headquartered in Boston and Florence, has a wealth of knowledge in the industry, bringing together their unique perspectives and expertise.

ABOUT ACCEL
Accel is a leading early and growth-stage venture capital firm, powering a global community of entrepreneurs. Accel backs entrepreneurs who have what it takes to build a world-class, category-defining business. Founded in 1983, Accel brings more than three decades of experience building and supporting hundreds of companies. Accel's vision for entrepreneurship and business enables it to identify and invest in the companies that will be responsible for the growth of next-generation industries. Accel has backed a number of iconic global platforms, which are powering new experiences for mobile consumers and the modern enterprise, including Atlassian, BlaBlaCar, Dropbox, Etsy, Facebook, Flipkart, Funding Circle, Kayak, QlikTech, Simplivity, Slack, Spotify, Supercell, World Remit and others.

PRESS CONTACT:
Lindsey Kopp Vinci, ALISON BROD PUBLIC RELATIONS
[email protected] | (212) 230.1800

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SOURCE M.Gemi

Related Links

http://www.mgemi.com