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Online luxury retailer Farfetch has hired bankers from JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs as it readies itself to make an initial public offering (IPO).
Farfetch, launched in 2008, enables nearly 900 boutiques and luxury brands to sell their designer products to around two million from 190 countries.
According to reports, Farfetch’s estimated value sits at around £4bn close to the current market valuation put on the whole of Marks and Spencer.
That is despite the fact that its most recent financial accounts, published in 2016, state that the Farfetch is yet to become profitable, posting losses before tax of £35.4m for the year to December 31 2016.
The IPO has been in the plans for the retailer for almost two years with its CEO and founder José Neves stating in 2016 that the company’s “next financial milestone” would be going public.
The news of the IPO comes after the unveiling of a new partnership with luxury department store Harvey Nichols, which itself follows a string of partnerships with leading luxury brands like Burberry and Chanel.
Natalie Massenet, co-chair of Farfetch’s board, said that the Harvey Nichols tie-up was “a strategic milestone for both companies, as well as a win for their customers globally.”
She added: “Bringing such an iconic and much-loved department store to Farfetch is a strategic milestone for both companies. Farfetch is proving it is truly the technology platform for the whole luxury fashion industry.”
