South Korea's Naver to buy e-commerce company Poshmark for $1.2 bn

The acquisition expands and diversifies Naver’s leading e-commerce platform and positions it to capitalise on the global online fashion e-commerce and sustainable economy opportunity, according to a joint press release by the two companies. The deal also extends Poshmark’s leadership and capitalises on changing consumer trends through new technology investments, international expansion, and category and product evolution

The deal represents a premium of 15 per cent to Poshmark’s closing stock price as of October 3, 2022, a 34 per cent premium to the 30-day volume weighted average price, and a 48 per cent premium to the 90-day volume weighted average price of Poshmark’s shares.

“The combination will create the strongest platform for powering communities and re-fashioning commerce. Poshmark is the definitive brand for fashion in the United States that provides a social network for buying and selling apparel. Naver’s leading technology in search, AI recommendation, and e-commerce tools will help power the next phase of Poshmark’s global growth,” said Choi Soo-Yeon, chief executive officer of Naver.

“This is a highly compelling opportunity for our employees, who will benefit from being part of a larger, global organisation with shared values and complementary strengths. This transaction also delivers significant and immediate value to our shareholders. Longer term, as part of Naver, we will benefit from their financial resources, significant technology capabilities, and leading presence across Asia to expand our platform, elevate our product and user experiences, and enter new and large markets. I look forward to partnering with Naver as we take our company into its next phase of growth,” said Manish Chandra, founder and chief executive officer of Poshmark.

Upon completion of the transaction, Poshmark will become a standalone US subsidiary of Naver and will continue to be led by CEO Manish Chandra and Poshmark’s current management team.

Poshmark will continue to operate under its existing brand, as well as maintain its employee base, Poshmark community, and headquarters in Redwood City, California, added the release.

The transaction, which was unanimously approved by both Naver’s and Poshmark’s boards of directors, is expected to close by the first quarter of 2023, subject to approval by Poshmark stockholders and the satisfaction of certain other customary closing conditions. The transaction is not contingent on any financing.

Naver has secured voting and support agreements with certain stockholders of Poshmark, representing approximately 77 per cent of the outstanding voting power of Poshmark common shares.

The transaction is expected to be funded with Naver’s cash balances and other existing financing sources.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)