The RealReal, the luxury resale marketplace, named President and COO Rati Sahi Levesque as CEO, effective immediately. The long-time company executive replaces John Koryl in the top role, who left the company and no longer serves on the Board.
Levesque helped found the company in 2011 and was its first employee. She has held leadership roles across multiple business areas, including sales, merchandising, product and technology, operations, and marketing.
“I am thrilled to announce Rati as The RealReal’s next CEO,” said Karen Katz, chairperson of the Board. “Rati has been pivotal in formulating and executing the recent strategic shifts that have propelled the company on its path to profitability. Rati’s commitment to the brand, along with her comprehensive understanding of the company, its market opportunity, and the luxury resale landscape, make her the right leader to take The RealReal into our next stage of profitable growth. She has worked in every aspect of the business and brings a proven track record of operational excellence.”
Levesque commented, “I am honored to lead The RealReal as its next CEO. The luxury resale market is vibrant and growing, and there is a significant opportunity to leverage our powerful brand and our valued community of consignors and buyers to enhance the client experience and accelerate profitable growth. I am a passionate believer in our vision to fuel a more sustainable and circular fashion industry by providing outstanding luxury goods to our customers. I look forward to working with our Board and our talented team to further grow our business and shareholder value.”
Katz continued, “Rati and the leadership team have the full confidence of the Board and are well-positioned to drive the business forward. We wish John well as he begins his next chapter and takes time to focus on his family.”
Before serving as president and COO, Levesque was the chief merchant. Before joining The RealReal, Levesque was an entrepreneur in the fashion-tech industry. Her experience includes launching a luxury consignment company. She previously worked in the financial industry.
Koryl joined RealReal as CEO in February 2023, about a year after Founder Julie Wainwright resigned. His former roles included president of CTC Digital at Canadian Tire Corporation, Ltd., and president of Neiman Marcus Direct.
Preliminary Third Quarter 2024 Financial Results and Updated Full Year 2024 Guidance
With today’s announcement, the company is also providing preliminary financial results for the third quarter, ended September 30, 2024, and updated its full-year 2024 guidance.
Gross Merchandise Value (GMV), Total Revenue and Adjusted EBITDA for the third quarter are expected to exceed previously issued guidance ranges, as outlined in the table below.
*Adjusted EBITDA is based on preliminary net loss of $(17.938) million for the three months ended September 30, 2024.
“We are pleased to report strong preliminary third quarter financial results enabling us to raise our full year guidance ranges,” commented Levesque. “Based on our preliminary results, GMV, Revenue and Adjusted EBITDA exceeded our expectations for the quarter, increasing our confidence in the momentum of our business.”
Levesque continued, “Our growth playbook, which is centered on unlocking supply, is working with proof points in both top line and margin metrics. The RealReal is positioned well as the leader in luxury resale with significant room to grow. Our strong third quarter results are an important step as we focus on growing our business profitably. We look forward to reporting actual third quarter results and discussing our fourth quarter and full year outlook in more detail during our earnings conference call next week.”
The company plans to release its actual third-quarter financial results after the market closes on November 4.
Images courtesy The RealReal
