Rebelle AB operates a leading European online marketplace for designer second-hand fashion, Rebelle.com, through its subsidiary StyleRemains GmbH.

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The range includes over 200,000 unique items from luxury and designer brands such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Hermès and Prada. Sellers can list and sell their used designer items. With the concierge service, Rebelle also offers sellers an all-inclusive service and takes care of the entire sales process: from creating professional text and image material to packaging and shipping. A team of experts assesses the authenticity and condition of the items and thus offers buyers a safe shopping experience. The company was founded in 2013 by Cécile Wickmann and Max Schönemann. The StyleRemains GmbH team consists of around 90 people and is based in Hamburg's Speicherstadt.

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FCG: Congratulations on your IPO. You are the first "Green IPO" listed in the global Nasdaq system. Can you explain to us what is behind the term "Green IPO"?

Cécile Wickmann: Since 2021, Nasdaq has been awarding the "Nasdaq Green Equity Designation" to selected and verified companies that generate more than 50 percent of their sales from environmentally friendly or sustainable activities and invest a significant proportion in them. The "Green Equity Designation" is awarded on the basis of a comprehensive evaluation by an independent auditor recognized by Nasdaq, in our case Cicero Shades of Green.

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Our managed marketplace model extends the lifespan of textiles, thereby conserving resources and avoiding waste, emissions and pollution. Cicero Shades of Green's "Green Equity Assessment Report" states: "Rebelle is making a positive contribution to combating climate change and is an encouraging example of the application of the principles of the circular economy." We are very happy and proud that we are the first company in the global Nasdaq system to be able to bear this award from the first day of trading.

FCG: You are still a relatively young company. How did you come to the decision to go public and what advice would you give to other young companies that still have that ahead of them?

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CW: The IPO was an idea from one of our large Scandinavian shareholders. When we looked into the topic more closely, we saw that there is a great demand for shares in young, growth-focused tech companies on the Swedish Nasdaq in particular and that the topic of sustainable investments is also particularly important. These were the two decisive criteria for us to take this path.

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Viewed from the outside, for us as a young German company, going public on the Swedish stock exchange was certainly anything but the logical next step. Therefore, I don’t think there is any general advice that applies to all young companies in this regard, except perhaps to always think outside the box.

FCG: Circular fashion is known to be one of the biggest growth areas in the global fashion industry. How do you deal with the increasing demand and which (German) labels work particularly well on your platform?

CW: From the outset, we paid great attention to automating our processes and thus making them scalable. This is now benefiting us. We are of course very pleased that more and more people are consciously considering their consumer behavior. They pay attention to the brands and, above all, the quality they buy and prefer to invest in high-quality, long-lasting products that will last a second or third life cycle and that they can resell for good money.

The brands that do best are Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Prada, although purchasing preferences vary greatly in Europe and are also influenced by national brands. In France, for example, B. Chanel is the most popular brand and in the UK Burberry is in the top 5. In Germany this is not so strong. Nevertheless, German brands such as Closed, Hugo Boss, Jil Sander or Iris von Arnim are in measurably more demand here than in other European countries.

FCG: You last had a pop-up store in Berlin's Galerie Lafayette in February. Are there any more planned for this year? If so, what criteria do you use to choose your retail partners and select your selection of preloved luxury items on site?

CW: Yes, there are still some exciting projects under discussion, but we cannot communicate them yet. With our collaborations we always want to try to introduce new target groups to the idea of ​​circular fashion who may not have come into contact with it before.

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The selection is usually selected jointly by us and our partners and represents our brand and product diversity. Of course, we always try to adapt the selection on site to the respective target customer. We have over 200,000 unique designer items from all top designer brands on offer. These include limited edition pieces or rare vintage pieces that are not available anywhere else.

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FCG: As a German company based in Hamburg, you are also well connected in Scandinavia with a Swedish parent company and Danish investors. In which markets do you see the greatest growth potential?

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CW: We are active across Europe and our largest markets are currently DACH, Italy and Benelux. Overall, over 65% of our transactions are international. This means that the seller and buyer are very likely to come from different countries.

Scandinavia is also very interesting for us due to its great innovative power in the area of ​​sustainability, the high degree of digitalization, and the design-oriented environment. In general, we see that resale is growing strongly throughout Europe and we would of course like to offer a contact point for all countries.

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We would like to thank Cécile Wickmann for the interview.