City Chic Acquires European Plus-Size Online Marketplace

Navabi is an online marketplace founded in 2009 that sells plus-size women’s clothing from a wide range of retailers. With the majority of its 5.8 million customer base located in Germany, it currently generates annual revenue of $16.6 million.

The acquisition aims to help expand the business’ digital footprint and tap into Europe’s €40 billion plus-size market. The brand is aligned with the retailer’s current growth strategy, and the opportunity to improve its profitability by overlaying a lean and customer-centric operating model.

navabi is a leading online plus-size marketplace in Europe | via navabi

“Navabi is an exciting strategic opportunity, giving us a great foothold in the €40 billion European plus­-size market, which is the next key geography in driving towards our vision to lead a world of curves,” explained Phil Ryan, the CEO and Managing Director of City Chic.

“Over the past decade, we have followed Navabi as it has built a strong online marketplace for plus-size brands. The Navabi customer has the same emotional connection that has driven our success, and we are excited to introduce our brands to this European customer base. The acquisition is in line with our tried and tested strategy of increasing our global digital customer base and driving profitable revenue growth.”

City Chic acquired US retailer Avenue in 2019 for $24.4 million after it filed for bankruptcy due to an ‘extremely competitive retail environment’. Earlier in 2021, the Australian retailer also added the UK retailer, Evans, to its portfolio for $41 million in cash.

“I have followed Evans for over a decade and seen how within Arcadia’s portfolio, the brand has evolved from a dominant high street retailer into a more digitally focused business,” said Ryan in a statement. “We had a successful partnership with Evans for many years which was a great channel for the City Chic brand in the UK. Evans gives us an excellent foundation in a new geography to grow our collective and is a brand which aligns with our existing product streams.”

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