Farfetch IPO a hit as Dream Assembly begins

Farfetch, a technology platform for the luxury fashion industry, reports that its US IPO has raised $885 million. 

The London-based company, which was founded in 2007, says that it and an existing shareholder sold a combined total of 44.2 million shares for $20 each. Farfetch had marketed the shares for $17 to $19 each.

Also of interest: Burberry inks e-commerce deal with Farfetch

Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase & Co., Allen & Co. and UBS led the offering. The shares are expected to trade Friday on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol FTCH.

Dream Assembly

Earlier this month, Farfetch announced the first cohort of startups for its Dream Assembly programme. 

These are working with technologies including virtual reality and artificial intelligence and are exploring ways of applying them to revolutionise the future of commerce. A 12 week programme will include a series of workshops, one-to-one sessions with Farfetch senior leaders, and mentorship meetings covering topics including e-commerce, marketing, technology, fashion and logistics and operations.

Additionally, Dream Assembly will offer networking opportunities, connecting the startups to relevant contacts in the fashion industry. Burberry will be contributing with knowledge and resources for the first cohort. In addition to sessions in the Portuguese cities of Lisbon and Porto, Seed Accelerator 500 Startups will be hosting a one-week growth bootcamp in San Francisco. The programme also includes a demo day in London, where companies will have the chance to pitch their projects to external investors for follow-on funding.

Further details here.

Sign up for our free retail technology newsletter here.