Pic: W Concept
IMM PE, which operates W Concept Korea, a leading women's fashion shopping mall, is in talks with the potential candidates for acquisition of W Concept. The candidates include retail giants Lotte Shopping and E-mart, and entertainment-mass media firm CJ ENM. The first two are also targeting to acquire EBay Korea. 11STREET dropped out before the main bidding.
W Concept Korea currently holds a 30 percent share of the women's online fashion market and ranks at No. 2 in the overall online fashion mall industry after Musinsa. Musinsa's main customers are men and it once also considered acquiring W Concept to beef up its women's fashion business, according to a report in a South Korean newspaper.
W Concept Korea recently launched in-house brands like Hersteller and FRONTROW, seeking to diversify its business portfolio.
However, W Concept Korea's weakness is its focus on women's wear. As a result, the fashion shopping mall has been trying to expand its target customers to middle-aged women and young men, who have become key demographic groups in the fashion industry, the report added.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
IMM PE, which operates W Concept Korea, a leading women's fashion shopping mall, is in talks with the potential candidates for acquisition of W Concept. The candidates include retail giants Lotte Shopping and E-mart, and entertainment-mass media firm CJ ENM. The first two are also targeting to acquire EBay Korea. 11STREET dropped out before the main bidding.