THE WHAT? North American livestream shopping platform, NTWRK has raised US$50 million in a funding round led by Goldman Sachs and Kering. Tenere Capital and LionTree Partners also participated.

THE DETAILS The video commerce marketplace plans to use the funds to ‘continue to define the virtual shopping experience by effectively catering to the growing digitally-native consumer market’.

“Our vision is to become the biggest, most culturally relevant, livestream shopping marketplace for Gen-Z and Millennial audiences who are obsessed with pop culture,” says NTWRK CEO Aaron Levant. “It’s exciting for NTWRK to have Goldman Sachs and Kering sign on for the future of livestream shopping.”

THE WHY? Livestream commerce is positioned to be a multi-billion dollar industry by all accounts. Gregory Boutté, Chief Client & Digital Officer at Kering, explains, “As part of our innovation strategy, we are taking minority stakes in companies developing disruptive experiences and services for the next generation of luxury consumers. We think that live e-commerce is a way to address this audience, share our Maisons’ unique storytelling, and augment the selling ceremony online.”