Dive Brief:
- Branded resale platform Trove has acquired Reverse.supply for an undisclosed amount, according to a press release.
- Trove is promoting the deal as a way to expand its presence in Europe. Reverse.supply, also a branded resale company, is headquartered in Berlin.
- Under the deal, the Reverse.supply team will join Trove, and Reverse.supply founders Janis Künkler and Max Große Lutermann will lead the European headquarters.
Dive Insight:
Trove works with brands to implement resale and repair services, including in-store and digital trade-ins, returns processing and resale site building and management. Its clients include Brooks Running and Carhartt.
The new acquisition follows Trove’s purchase of its competitor Recurate last year, which Trove said allowed it to expand its peer-to-peer resale tech, Shopify integrations and operational networks. That deal added Steve Madden, Frye and Michael Kors to Trove’s client load.
At the time of the deal with Recurate, Trove executives said they were eyeing global expansion, particularly in the European Union and U.K.
With the purchase of Reverse.supply, Trove said it is expanding its reach into 30 countries in North America and Europe. Reverse.supply’s clients include Bergzeit, Decathlon and Armedangels, which will join Trove’s client list.
Terry Boyle, CEO of Trove, said in the release that the deal came at a time when European legislation around producer responsibility and right-to-repair is creating urgency for brands to implement such programs.
The European Union and some U.S. states have called for the implementation of extended producer responsibility — or EPR — programs for apparel. These programs make brands responsible for the end-of-life cycle of their products, including collection, sortation, reuse and recycling.
“By establishing our European headquarters in Berlin with a team that's been operating in resale for nearly five years, we're positioned to serve European and global brands seamlessly across regions and provide them with the full capabilities they need to launch and scale successful resale programs,” Boyle said.
