Worldview: Dubai Investors Back Kenyan Beauty Brand Uncover

🇰🇪 Kenyan skincare brand Uncover raises $1.4 million to expand to the US. The Nairobi-based company, launched in 2021 by Sneha Mehta and Jade Oyateru, has secured the funding in a round led by Dubai-based venture capital firm EQ2 Ventures and US-based IgniteXL Ventures, with participation from Chui Ventures, Samata Capital and Altree Capital. Uncover, which uses data provided by users on its app to have personalised skincare products created by labs in South Korea and distributes the products through its e-commerce platform and pharmacy retailers like Goodlife and Medplus in Kenya and Nigeria respectively, plans to use the investment to expand into the US, Ghana and Uganda markets. In 2021, the firm reportedly raised $100,000 in a pre-seed round from VC firm Antler and $1 million in a seed round the following year. [TechCabal, CNN]

🇾🇪 Alphaliner forecasts Red Sea crisis rerouting to continue until 2025. The maritime intelligence platform has stated that “most industry stakeholders [are] now banking on continued Cape of Good Hope diversions until 2025 at least.” Since December, attacks and threats by Yemen-based, Iran-backed Houthi militants have prompted Suez Canal-bound vessels carrying goods between Asia and Europe, including fashion products, to take a much lengthier and costlier alternative route around Africa. The Houthis, who claim their actions are to show support for Gaza’s Palestinians in the Israel-Hamas war, have recently escalated tensions by directly striking Tel Aviv for the first time, prompting retaliation from Israel. [Sourcing Journal, Guardian]

🇨🇳 Richemont’s Q1 jewellery sales are solid, offsetting drop in China demand. The Swiss group said jewellery sales — which account for the bulk of its revenue and profit and include the Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Buccellati brands — showed resilience, rising 4 percent. The group, which also owns watch brands Vacheron Constantin, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Piaget, is facing slowing demand for its luxury products, particularly in China. Sales in Greater China plunged 27 percent during the quarter, the company said. Sales in all regions beyond Asia Pacific were higher. [BoF]

🇨🇱 UN calls for improved regulation to reduce textile waste in Chile’s Atacama. “A partnership between the European Union and Chile could pioneer innovative approaches to regulate and reduce the impact of second-hand textile trade, including by setting global standards for the trade of used textiles, focusing on sustainability and social responsibility,” wrote the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean’s executive secretary José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs in a report about the “mountains of [discarded] used clothes visible from the moon” polluting Chile’s Atacama desert. [UNECE]

🇮🇱 Adidas pulls ad campaign of Bella Hadid after Israeli criticism. The German sportswear brand Adidas has removed images on social media of the American model with Palestinian roots. The campaign features shoes launched in 1972, the year of the Munich Olympics when 11 Israelis were killed in a terrorist attack by pro-Palestine militants. Israel’s embassy in Germany and antisemitism groups criticised the casting of Hadid who has been accused of chanting a controversial slogan that some say is used to call for the elimination of Israel. Explaining its “revising” of the campaign, the brand said in statement: “we are conscious that connections have been made to tragic historical events — though these are completely unintentional — and we apologise for any upset or distress caused.” [Financial Times]

🇨🇳 Jay-Z’s backing of Chinese watch trading platform Wristcheck sparks interest. Asia-focused media outlets like Radii have been analysing the significance of the American hip hop musician’s recent investment in the Hong Kong-based company founded in 2020 by watch collector and Instagram star Austen Chu. Wristcheck charges a commission on sales of second-hand luxury timepieces on its platform and provides an authentication services to buyers and sellers in Asia. So far, the company has raised approximately $13.6 million and is backed by the Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, Gobi Partners GBA and K3 Ventures. [Bloomberg, Radii]

🇮🇳 Indian department store Shoppers Stop reports $2.7 million Q1 loss. The fashion and lifestyle retailer, which currently has 112 namesake stores selling fashion, 22 multi-brand beauty doors, over 20 airport stores and over 20 Intune stores across 62 Indian cities, has posted a loss of 22.72 crore rupees for the quarter ended June 2024, compared to a 4.49 crore rupee profit in the corresponding period last fiscal year. CEO Kavindra Mishra cited “subdued consumption due to prolonged heat waves, elections, fewer weddings and inflation.” [Economic Times]

🇨🇳 Chinese authorities crack down on daigou grey market sellers in Hainan. During the pandemic, grey market agents who buy luxury goods overseas or in other favourable tax jurisdictions ramped up operations in the duty-free Chinese island but over the last year the authorities have been trying to deter the trade by publicising arrests and taking other measures. [Jing Daily]

🇪🇬 Egypt’s ready-made garment exports exceed $1 billion in Jan-May period. The sector’s overall exports rose by 19 percent year over year during the period to reach $1.08 billion, including $254 million (up 25 percent) to European Union countries, $444 million (up 10 percent) to the US and $217 million (up 38 percent) to other Arab countries. [Fibre2Fashion]

🇨🇳 China Duty Free Group’s parent posts double-digit H1 sales decline. The parent of CDFG, China Tourism Group Duty Free Corporation (CTG), has posted a sales decrease of 12.81 percent year-on-year to 31.265 billion yuan ($4.3 billion) in the six months ending June 2024. Net profit also declined at 14.94 percent to 3.288 billion yuan (453.5 million) in the period. [The Moodie Davitt Report]

🇮🇳 India’s textile and apparel exports increase more than 4% in April-June. The country saw exports rise by 4.08 percent reaching $8.785 billion in the period, according to the Ministry of Commerce and Trade’s latest trade figures, with the textile category alone increasing 6.04 percent to $4.935 billion. Rakesh Mehra, chairman of the Confederation of Indian Textile Industry (CITI), attributed the growth to an increased share of Indian products in the US market compared to its competitors. [Fibre2Fashion]

🇮🇳 India’s watch retailer Ethos partners with horological media Revolution. The multi-brand chain with more than 65 boutiques selling luxury watch brands such as Breitling, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Hublot across 26 Indian cities, will curate content from Revolution magazine to be featured in The Watch Guide, Ethos’s digital magazine. “We aim to elevate the level of discourse… with compelling narratives from the leading edge of watch journalism,” said Ethos CEO Pranav Saboo about the partnership with Revolution’s founder Wei Koh. [BoF Inbox]

🇨🇳 Hugo Boss plunges after slashing outlook on China, UK demand. Shares at the German high-end fashion brand plunged to their lowest level since 2021 after the company slashed its profit guidance for the year. It now expects operating profit of around €350 million ($381 million) to €430 million in 2024, down from a previous range of €430 million to €475 million, according to a statement. The shares slid as much as 11 percent on last Tuesday. [BoF]

🇮🇳 India’s eyewear retail chain Lenskart raises around $19 million from founders. The Gurugram-based company founded in 2010 has been infused with 160 crore rupees worth of capital from co-founders Peyush Bansal, Neha Bansal, Amit Chaudhary and Sumeet Kapahi, Lenskart, which has over 1,100 stores across India, secured secondary investment last month from Singapore’s Temasek and US-based Fidelity Management and Research Company. [Economic Times]

🌎 Highsnobiety aims for Iberian, US Hispanic and Latin American markets. The Berlin-based global streetwear media outlet has hired Spanish marketer Guillem Gallego, and Andrés Reymondes, an Argentine veteran of Vice media. “Their leadership will ensure a holistic approach that encompasses all aspects of the company’s engagement with the Hispanic community, including cultural relevance, marketing initiatives, and business growth,” the company said. [BoF Inbox]

🇰🇭 Cambodia’s apparel exports increase 18.5% in H1 2024. The Southeast Asian sourcing hub’s apparel exports surged to $4.33 billion, accounting for 35.21 percent of the country’s total foreign income. The knitted apparel category saw increases of 13.0 percent, while non-knitted apparel rose by 30.1 percent. [Fibre2Fashion]

🇰🇷 The inaugural Gucci Cultural Month will be presented in South Korea in Oct. The Italian luxury brand is launching the initiative in Seoul to celebrate Korean culture featuring filmmaker Park Chan-wook, artist Kimsooja, dancer Eun Me Ahn and pianist Seong-Jin Cho through exhibitions, performances and still and moving images. [MK Maeil Business Newspaper]

🇮🇳 Indian womenswear brand Newme raises $18 million from Accel and others. The youth-focused brand co-founded by Sumit Jasoria in 2022, which raised 45 crore rupees ($5.1 million) earlier this year, has secured the new funding in a Series A round from Accel and existing investors including Fireside Ventures and AUM Ventures. [Economic Times]

🇹🇭 Louis Vuitton taps Blackpink’s Lisa as its brand ambassador. The French luxury brand has signed an endorsement deal with the Thai member of the K-pop girl band who was born Pranpriya Manobal and is known as Lalisa Manobal in South Korea. [Elle]

🇰🇷 Diesel names South Korean singer Hoshi as brand ambassador. The Italian denim label has inked an endorsement deal with Kwon Soon-young, the lead vocalist of K-pop band Seventeen who is better known by his stage name Hoshi. [Sourcing Journal]