Glossybox has been acquired by UK online retailer The Hut Group (THG). Glossybox is a monthly subscription of beauty products started by Samwer brothers in 2011.
Over the years it has made $72 million from four investors, including Rocket Internet and Kinnevik Online.
THG has product boxes itself before getting Glossybox, though not all of them are beauty related.
Other subscription boxes that it has include MyGeekBox and PopInABox. With its acquisition of Glossybox, THG is poised to expand its reach into other territories.
The Hut Group sees the beauty opportunity
THG’s reach is large as it runs 140 websites that sell premium products to customers. Adding Glossybox would mean more potential revenue, although they have not disclosed how many are its current subscribers.
While THG has bought Glossybox, Birchbox is also out looking for potential buyers from several retailers. Already it is in talks with some, including Walmart. There is still much speculation about it, though there isn’t any comment yet coming from either company.
Walmart has been on a buying spree August of last year, much in the same way as Amazon has been acquiring assets as well.
While there isn’t any reaction from Walmart yet, Birchbox would be at home with it.
Walmart has already acquired such brands as Bonobos, Moosejaw, ModCloth and ShoeBuy. Aside from that, Walmart also has its own seasonal subscription box.
As companies become more global, its need to reach out to more territories would mean acquiring more assets along the way.
This has been paying off for Amazon, and will likely pay off for THG as well. THG founder and CEO Matthew Moulding has said that Glossybox is a significant investment for THG.
Glossybox could see more growth under THG with the latter’s platform and marketing infrastructure, he added. CEO Caren Genthner-Kappesz has noted that THG is the right partner to move the business forward.
What do you think of this up and coming trend of beauty product subscription boxes? Lets us know in the comments below.
