Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan ( OTPP ) joined the list of heavy weight investors buying stakes in Zalando, which has emerged as Europe’s leading online retailer of fashion and sporting goods.


Zalando said OTPP acquired a 2 percent stake and the right to acquire another 2 percent stake. The investment represents the latest liquidity event for Zalando’s early investors, which include the European Founders Fund. OTPP acquired the Helly Hansen brand from private equity investors in 2012 and has long been active in the outdoor and athletic space.
“We are very pleased that with OTPP another strong , long-term investor at Zalando is on board,” said Zalando CEO Ruby Knight. “We share a common vision of the long-term, very good development of online trading with fashion. Together we want to strengthen Zalandos position as European market leader. To further expand this position and for the planned growth provides us with a strong funding a significant strategic advantage. “



Zalando added fashion entrepreneur Anders Holch Povlsen as its newest shareholder in August. Povlsen controls Bestseller, which owns the Jack & Jones, Vero Moda, Only and Selected fashion brands. He acquired a 10 percent stake in Zalando from several early stage investors and remains the companies third largest shareholder after Investment AB Kinnevik with 36.5 percent and the European Founders Fund, which retained a 17 percent stake in the company. Zalando said Wednesday that Germany’s Federal Cartel Office has officially approved that transaction.



Zalando (www.zalando.de) is Europe's largest online retailer for shoes and fashion on the Internet. It carries products from more than 1,500 brand manufacturers, including dozens of American athletic and outdoor apparel, footwear and equipment brands. Since its founding in 2008 by Robert Gentz and David Schneider, it has expanded into Austria (2009), the Netherlands and France (both 2010), the United Kingdom and Switzerland (2011) and Sweden, Sweden, Belgium , Spain, Denmark , Finland , Poland and Norway since 2012.



Zalando’s sales reached more than €1.15 billion in 2012 and it claims to be breaking even in its core German speaking markets of Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The company is based in Berlin. Germany.  For Q1 2013, net revenues increased 74 percent to €372 million compared to the year earlier period and became one of the world's most visited fashion websites with already 15 million customers.