SEOUL -- Musinsa, a popular South Korean online fashion platform, has attracted more than 200 billion won ($157.8 million) through Series C round funding led by American investment company Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. with participation from Wellington Management, an American private independent investment management firm.
Musinsa made a foray into South Korea's fashion industry in 2003 as a small online fashion community. The startup company opened an online shopping mall in 2009 and garnered popularity among young consumers for affordable and fashionable items. Musinsa's policy of offering hefty shopping benefits for customers who upload product reviews including photographs attracted more consumers.
The online apparel giant with more than one million monthly active users became South Korea's tenth online startup unicorn, a company that reached a valuation of $1 billion without being listed on the stock market, in 2019. In November 2019, the platform received a $2 billion investment from Sequoia Capital, an American venture capital firm, through Series A funding and became a unicorn enterprise. Customers favor purchasing brand products through Musinsa because they do not have to worry about buying a rip-off.
Musinsa said that thanks to the Series C funding, the company's valuation reached about 3.5 trillion won. "We will not stay satisfied in the service sector, where we are doing great, but continue to set new standards for successful business in online and offline markets by collaborating with domestic and foreign fashion brands," Musinsa CEO Han Mun-il said in a statement on July 20.
The online fashion platform operator boldly decided in April 2021 to open its first offline store in Hongdae, a base for music and trendy culture in western Seoul. A month later, Musinsa acquired Styleshare, a domestic online fashion portal, to attract young female customers and strengthen its presence abroad. In 2022, Musinsa opened another offline store in Gangnam, Seoul's southern district well known for Rapper Psy's global hit song Gangnam Style.
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