Investment for Swedish retailer Caliroots

Cristina Stenbeck, former chairman of Swedish investment company Kinnevik, has invested 18 million Swedish kronor (1.69 million euros) in Caliroots. The Swedish omnichannel retailer of sneakers and streetwear just announced it made a loss of about 3.75 million euros last year.

For comparison, the loss was just about 843,000 euros during the year before. According to the latest annual report, Caliroots generated sales worth over 35 million euros.

‘Errors in product assortment’

Andreas Koschnike, the CEO of Caliroots, told Swedish website Ehandel that the weaker results can be attributed, among other things, to some errors in the product assortment. Normally, the online fashion retailers has a product margin of 38 to 39 percent, but last year this number decreased to 32 percent after the retail company relied on an overly heavy sneaker range during spring. But the shoes didn’t sell as good as planned, which led to them being sold at lower prices while Caliroots marketed other products instead.

Caliroots launched its own brand

According to Koschnike however, the omnichannel retailer succeeded in rebalancing and returning to better levels again during the fall of last year. Caliroots now sells less sneakers and more fashion, streetwear and accessories. In addition, the company also launched its own brand.

“Having your own brand gives more control and much stronger margins, which are rarely below 70 percent”, the CEO explains. “But at the same time, it’s important to have a balance. We will not just become a brand, but rather see this part as an amplifier.”

Stenbeck now owns 7.9 percent of Caliroots

Nevertheless, the company generated losses of about 3.75 million last year, but maybe there’s no need to worry. Through her private company Camshaft, Cristina Stenbeck bought a 7.9 percent stake in Caliroots and invested a total of 1.69 million euros in the Swedish company, while venture capital film Verdane brought almost one million euros to the table.

Stenbeck left the board of investment company Kinnevik earlier this year, motivated by the fact she wanted more freedom, including for her own investments.