Per Kommersant, Russian online-retailer startup TrendsBrands has obtained $3 million (2,2 million euro) in funding from the French venture fund Ventech. This comes in addition to the $1 million (approximately 739,400 euro) that TrendsBrands has raised from Russian funds Kite Ventures and ru-Net, who previously invested $1 million in autumn 2011. Headed by CEO Anastasia Sartan, TrendBrands is a retailer which offers high-end Russian and foreign brands for low prices. Founded in June 2011, Sartan told Kommersant the company did more than $10 million in revenue from its online business and its 2 physical stores, which are located in central Moscow. Sartan also stated that the company anticipated $60-80 million (44-59 million euro in annual revenue by the end of 2015 and that her firm will be making a bigger push to develop an offline presence in Russia this year.
In terms of competition, ASOS stands out. Based in the U.K., this firm provided the inspiration for the Russian TrendsBrands. Sartan told Kommersant that her firm is only competing with Western companies. In recent years, Oktogo, a leading Russian online hotel-booking service, has received funding from Ventech and several other private investors to the tune of $5 million (3,7 million euro). In return, these investors received 20% equity.
