UK’s authentic sneakers resale platform Laced bags €11.1M; announces its new visual identity

London-based Laced, an online marketplace for authentic sneakers, announced on Wednesday, May 24, that it has raised $12M (nearly €11.18M) in a Series A round of funding.

The company has now raised a total of over $17M (nearly €15.84M) to date.

According to Laced, the Series A investment was made possible by the platform’s Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) topping $100M and the employment of some well-known and accomplished professionals in the industry.

Laced says it will use the funds to further expand and develop its technology and product offering further.

Investors supporting the round

The investment was led by London’s early-stage investment firm Talis Capital who previously led Laced’s seed round. H&M Group Ventures, the investment arm of H&M Group, also participated in the round.

Nanna Andersen, Head of New Growth & Ventures at H&M Group, says, “In building an impressive online marketplace, they (Laced) are not only providing consumers with a specially curated selection of in-demand sneakers but also an important platform to extend the lifecycle of products.”

The Series A round was also supported by existing investors BY Venture Partners and Truesight Ventures. A number of Angel investors including Bart Swanson (current board member at Impossible Foods, and previously at Zoom) and Eric Archambeau (co-founder of Astanor Ventures) also participated in this round.

A marketplace for buying and selling authentic luxury goods

Founded in 2018 by Chris Gibbons, Laced claims to provide access to the latest sneakers as easily as possible. The platform enables buying and selling of the “most exclusive and desirable” sneakers via its marketplace by bringing together buyers and sellers of authentic goods.

Laced provides “industry-leading” authentication of goods, same-day order processing, seven-day-a-week delivery, and same-day-as-sale payments as standard, which is far quicker than competing marketplaces.

The company’s marketplace is completely anonymous, with buyer and vendor names never revealed. Laced distinguishes itself from other sneaker, high fashion and luxury items retail and resale sites by handling each transaction safely and securely. 

In 2021, the counterfeit sneaker industry was valued more than five times the value of the real market, indicating that the selling of counterfeit shoes has become a serious issue on resale platforms.

In order to assure the authenticity of every sneaker sold, Laced has a dedicated staff of in-house authenticators that meticulously inspect every pair before they are given to the customer.

Matt Miller, Laced’s Head of Authentication Operations and one of the industry’s most renowned executives, created the “unique” verification method.

Chris Gibbons says, “We are driven by our belief that everyone deserves access to luxury goods. Our technology and team of experts not only democratise this access but also ensures that all products are authentic and that each transaction is safe and secure.”

Laced’s technology is being developed by newly appointed CTO Chris Conolly (a former Engineering Director at Gousto), and Head of Product Design Doran Black (who recently joined from Farfetch), as well as the growing data science, product, and technical teams.

A new brand identity

Besides the funding, the UK-based startup also announced that it is launching a new brand campaign from creative firm SomeOne, which includes a new logo, brand colours and motifs, as well as a new font developed by Colophon.

This new brand logo embodies the company’s goal to democratise access to some of the most sought-after luxury goods.

Gareth Olyott, Chief of Staff at Laced, says, “Today at Laced, as we announce our Series A funding, we also bid farewell to our iconic four-lined L logo. This symbolises a pivotal moment in our journey of growth and expansion.”

“With our rebrand, we are opening the doors to the next phase of Laced, complete with a fresh identity. Here, our focus is on both simplicity, where the allure of the most captivating sneakers on the market becomes our voice, and trust, underpinned by our industry-leading authentication process.”

“We’re proud to deliver our users a refreshed, modernised version of the Laced experience. It’s the same Laced but with a captivating new look,” adds Olyott.