Vietnamese e-commerce firm Leflair has raised US$7 million in a Series B funding round from South Korea’s GS Shop and private equity firm Belt Road Capital Management.
This investment is the first by GS Group’s online retail subsidiary GS Shop in a Vietnam startup, and is expected to increase the volume of South Korean products in Leflair’s inventory.
“We are going to use this capital first to leverage as much as possible the strategic partnership with GS. It means investing in hiring the teams that will make this partnership a success and deploying resources in the areas of fulfillment, delivery, and technology,” says Leflair CEO and co-founder Loic Gautier.
“This year will be one of regional expansion as we progress towards making the world’s best brands accessible to more consumers in Southeast Asia,” Gautier added.
Founded in 2015, Leflair focuses on premium-branded products for women, men, kids, and homes. Since its launch, Leflair has raised US$11.8 million investment from angel investors and venture capital firms from the US, France, Italy, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Cambodia.
According to a recent EU-Vietnam Business Network report, Vietnam had about 51 million internet users in 2017. Vietnam’s e-commerce sector is forecast to continue growing at 14 per cent annually this year and next.
