South Korea-based fashion reselling platform Kream has raised $168 million in a Series C funding round led by US-based return investor Altos Ventures, TechCrunch reported.
Other existing investors, including SoftBank Ventures Asia, Indian VC firm Mirae Asset Capital, and South-Korean internet conglomerate Naver, also participated in the funding along with new investors such as Samsung Group’s subsidiary Samsung Securities and Singapore-based Axiom Asia.
Launched in 2020 as a transaction brokerage service for limited edition sneakers, Kream plans to use the new funding to increase its luxury product portfolio, include emerging brands on its platform, and recruit more employees.
The retailer also seeks to ramp up its Asia investments by connecting with other Asia-based reselling platforms to provide users a wider range of luxury products.
Kream participated in Japanese e-commerce startup SODA’s $56.4-million Series C funding round in 2021, Singapore-based second-hand tech gadgets platform Reebelo’s $20-million in a Series A round last year, along with minor investments in Thailand-based streetwear marketplace Sasom and Malaysian sneaker reselling platform Shake Hands.
The company is trying to move away from a simple transaction brokerage platform to a place where customers who enjoy fashion and resale markets can communicate with each other based on products and content.
Kream, which started off as Snow, was a subsidiary of South-Korean internet conglomerate Naver. In 2021, the company announced its plan to establish limited edition sneaker brokerage platform Kream as an independent corporation.