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Portfolio company case study: Trove

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City, State

Brisbane, CA

Year Founded

2012

Sector

Enterprise solutions

Deal Lead

Molly Breiner

Investment Date

29 July 2021

Series Invested

Series D Preferred stock

Company overview

Trove is a market leader in branded recommerce, providing white-label software and end-to-end operations to brands in the retail, apparel, outdoor, and luxury segments. Trove enables premium brands to intake, aggregate, and authenticate preowned versions of their goods and then resell them to consumers.

Investment thesis

Given their tech-enabled supply-chain capabilities, leading customers, and revenue growth, we believe Trove is positioned to be a dominant player in the still-new online resale market, which has grown from US$7B to US$18B from 2018 to 2021. US online resales are estimated to grow further at a 25% CAGR over the next eight years.1

Climate materiality

Reduction in GHG emissions: Clothing production accounts for up to 10% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions globally. In the US, 15 million tons of textiles are produced annually, with 85% ending up in a landfill. By enabling companies to drive a “circular economy” at scale, Trove will reduce GHG emissions caused by apparel consumption. Data indicates a used purchase replaces a new purchase 60% of the time, enabling material emissions reductions.2

The case study presented is for illustrative purposes only to show how Wellington engages with private company founders and management teams. The private climate team makes investments in other companies with different characteristics and the full list can be found on here

Partnering with Wellington helps us deliver on our mission to enable a circular economy in retail through their resources and expertise in climate impact management and ESG integration.

Gayle Tait
CEO, Trove

Gayle Tait is the CEO of Trove, which is a portfolio company that Wellington has invested in. This statement about Wellington reflects a personal opinion that may not be shared by others. There has been no compensation provided for such statements.

Trove’s unique technology solution is helping resale grow at a significantly faster rate than the rest of retail.  We chose to partner with Trove given their market leadership, differentiated technology, and world-class brand partnerships.

Molly Breiner
Wellington Sector Lead, Private Climate Investing (Sector focus: Food & Agriculture)
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Meet the investment team

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Sector Lead, Private Climate Investing (Sector focus: Food & Agriculture)
Boston
delucia-mike
Sector Lead, Private Climate Investing (Sector focus: Energy Transition, Buildings, & Cities)
New York
sean-petersen-new
Sector Lead, Private Climate Investing (Sector focus: Enterprise & Industrial)
New York
xie-jenny-08394
Venture Associate, Private Climate Investing
Boston

Explore more case studies

Our Focus Areas

Venture capital

We look to partner with early-stage companies that can become leaders in large and growing markets.

From energy transformation to sustainable cities to next-generation agriculture, we support innovative companies helping to address the impacts of climate change.

We seek out companies at the nexus of scientific breakthroughs and medical needs with innovations that are improving the standard of care of medicine for patients.

To guide late-stage private companies through the finish line and beyond, we leverage our deep industry expertise, resources, and long-term relationships across public and private markets.

Private credit 

We seamlessly combine our extensive private placement experience and deep expertise working with insurers — as one of the largest asset managers for insurance companies globally.

1 Cowen, Poshmark Coverage February 2021.
2 Farfetch, Understanding the Environmental Savings of Buying Pre-Owned Fashion (2020).