Chrono24 tim stracke
Tim Stracke, co-CEO of Chrono24.

Chrono24 declares €43 million cash injection

Investment will be used to help secondary market platform “shape the future of the online luxury watch industry,” CEO Tim Stracke says.

Chrono24 has declared an injection of €43 million from existing and fresh investors.

The funding round takes the total raised to finance the growth of the Germany-based company to €80 million since it was founded 15 years ago.

Founder and co-chief executive Tim Stracke stresses that the company is operationally profitable, adding that the cash injection and the experience that additional investors bring to the business, will fuel growth.

“We will use this new capital to better address the needs of dealers, private users, and manufacturers. Our focus is on improving the customer experience while remaining open to further business expansion. We look forward to playing an integral role in shaping the future of the online luxury watch industry,” Mr Stracke tells WatchPro today.

“Continuous growth without taking major losses has always been an essential component of our growth strategy. With over fifteen years of experience in the industry, we feel closer to our users than ever before and are familiar with what makes them tick,” he adds.

Chrono24 currently attracts 7 million unique visitors per month and has around 400,000 pre-owned and new watches listed on the site.

More than 3,000 dealers and over 20,000 private sellers in 100 countries offer watches for sale.

In 2018, Chrono24 says it generated a transaction volume of €1.3 billion. The company charges sellers a fee for listing their watches and earns a commission every time a transaction is completed on its site for a sale.

The current value of fees and commissions has not been disclosed.

Chrono24’s new shareholders come from the worlds of finance, online marketplaces, luxury goods, and watches.

Henrik Persson, a partner at Sprints Capital who led the latest round of fundraising created one of the largest and most successful online portfolios in Europe – including companies such as Zalando, Avito, and Rocket Internet – for his former employer, Kinnevik.

Pierre Siri, also of Sprints Capital, has joined the board of Chrono24.

Mr Siri has helped build many online marketplaces as CEO and CTO, among them what would become the billion-dollar French business LeBonCoin.

Gianni Serazzi, a former director at Richemont, brings his expertise in luxury goods to the company.

A statement from Chrono24 says that many existing shareholders have taken this opportunity to increase their stake in the company including Insight Partners from New York and some Asian funds that have made substantial co-investments.

Chrono24’s managing director and co-CEO, Holger Felgner, who has been at the company for three years, also participated in this round of financing.

“We’re thrilled to have shareholders with a wide range of expertise, from watches and luxury to online marketplaces and in-depth knowledge of the Asian market. Together, we’ll be able to significantly accelerate Chrono24’s growth using this investment capital and our combined know-how,” Mr Stracke concludes.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *