M&S and Founders Factory announce startups JV
Marks and Spencer and Founders Factory, co-founded by Brent Hoberman, founder of lastminute.com and Henry Lane Fox, have launched Founders Factory Retail.
M&S will become Founders Factory’s exclusive UK retail partner and invest in startups sourced through its global network. The retailer will be the majority shareholder within the joint venture.
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Steve Rowe, Chief Executive at M&S, says: “This gives M&S access to a global network of startups and entrepreneurs which will provide disruptive thinking and questioning to the way we work at a time of critical transformation within the business. Founders Factory have a great track record in creating successful businesses and by investing in new innovative technologies and products we hope to change the way we work and operate.”
Hoberman comments: “After over 60 investments in the last two years we have seen the huge potential of combining startup innovation with corporate scale and expertise, and so we are excited by this new chapter in a sector that is changing rapidly through technology.”