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ZALANDO has announced its intention to acquire up to 100% of the capital of ABOUT YOU via a voluntary public offering. If this operation is widely perceived as a consolidation of B2C activities in the fashion sector, it also highlights a strategic ambition: to strengthen their position in B2B thanks to their technological platforms SCAYLE and ZEOS.
B2B, a key growth lever for ZALANDO
In a European fashion and lifestyle market estimated at 450 billion euros, omnichannel management of brand activities has become fundamental for brands. Through this acquisition, ZALANDO and ABOUT YOU aim to combine their technological expertise to offer comprehensive solutions tailored to the needs of brands and retailers.
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SCAYLE, the SaaS division of ABOUT YOU, provides tailor-made solutions for managing online stores. With over 200 clients, including Harrods and Manchester United, SCAYLE offers tools to optimize direct sales and strengthen omnichannel presence. For its part, ZEOS, ZALANDO’s technology platform, already supports brands and retailers in the management of their multi-channel activities within the ZALANDO ecosystem.
A strategic technological combination
The integration of SCAYLE and ZEOS promises significant operational synergies. Together, these platforms will offer brands unified solutions integrating logistics, payments, order management and advanced software tools. The objective is to simplify the management of omnichannel activities while reducing costs.
SCAYLE, known for its flexibility and adaptability, will complement ZEOS’ capabilities by offering personalized services for the brands’ own online stores. This includes solutions to optimize the user experience and increase the profitability of direct sales channels. This strategy allows them to compete with platforms like Shopify or Mirakl, by focusing on an integrated solution specific to the fashion sector.
ZALANDO aims to generate synergies estimated at 100 million euros per year thanks to this union. These gains will come in particular from the optimization of logistics processes, payment infrastructures and commercial collaborations.
The B2C strategy: a dual approach to capture new segments
ZALANDO and ABOUT YOU, which respectively have 50 million and 12 million active customers in Europe, will adopt a dual-brand strategy to better meet consumer expectations. ZALANDO will focus on a “brand”-oriented clientele, with an assortment exceeding 6,000 brands and reinforced categories such as sport or family. ABOUT YOU, on the other hand, will target a younger, style-focused audience, with a community of over 27,000 content creators and 700,000 SKUs, including exclusive collaborations. Logistical and technological synergies between the two entities are expected to improve operational efficiency and reduce costs in the long term.
Details of the financial transaction
ZALANDO is proposing a voluntary public offer of €6.50 per ABOUT YOU share, valuing the latter at approximately €1.85 billion. This offer represents a premium of 12% to the median analyst target price (€5.80) and a significant premium of 107% to the three-month weighted average price of ABOUT YOU shares as of December 10, 2024 (3. €14). The main shareholders of ABOUT YOU, including OTTO GROUP, OTTO FAMILY, HEARTLAND and management, representing 73% of the share capital, have signed binding agreements to sell their shares to ZALANDO. This acquisition will be financed in part by existing liquidity and credit lines, with the transaction expected to close in summer 2025, subject to regulatory approvals.
