South Korean technology firm Naver has agreed to a $1.6 billion deal to buy Poshmark, a US apparel resale platform firm, news report said.
Last year, Naver acquired North American online literature platform Wattpad for about $600 million.
The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of next year. The investment of $1.6 billion to enter the US e-commerce market includes consideration for Poshmark’s cash holdings, and the enterprise value of Poshmark is about $1.2 billion, a Naver spokesperson said.
Poshmark is the largest fashion consumer-to-consumer platform in North America, with 80 million registered users.
The deal will combine Poshmark’s shopping platform with Naver’s technology including image recognition, artificial intelligence and live streaming, a key driver of e-commerce in South Korea.
The companies plan to target an $80 billion market in online fashion re-commerce in the US, which is expected to grow by 20 percent annually to $130 billion by 2025, according to Activate Consulting.
