Melijoe.com raises 9 million euro to become worldwide leader

A web shop “like a magazine”

“Melijoe works like a magazine that delivers the best children’s brands anywhere in the world within 24 to 48 hours. We target a clientele of fashion-savvy mums who appreciate designer clothes for themselves and their children”, Melijoe.com’s founder Nathalie Christen-Genty said.

The atypical web shop, managed from Paris, is now available in six languages and already generates more than half of its turnover from outside France. Christen-Genty ambitions reach much further though, because she wants to become the world’s number one in the online world of children’s fashion by 2017.

Her company has recently raised 9 million euro in a capital round, led by Belgian investment fund Gimv. Melijoe.com’s historical shareholder CM-CIC Capital Privé also participated. “Melijoe is more than an e-commerce site. It is recognised by its suppliers – the mid and higher-end kidswear brands – as the multi-brand website that represents best their image”, Gimv’s Gert Kerkstoel said.

“Melijoe is a strategic partner for brands that are in an ongoing process of reviewing their distribution strategy to reflect the global, multi-channel retail reality. The challenge of adapting distribution to new consumer purchasing habits is far from over and kidswear is a perfect example of this evolution. We want to support Melijoe in further building out a global leading position in the industry”, he concluded.