ELOQUII, an e-Commerce apparel site designed for fashion-loving women sizes 14-24, has raised approximately $6M in a Series A round of funding led by Greycroft Partners.
Other investors who participated in the round include Daher Capital, Bassett Investment Group, Fabrice Grinda, Jose Marin, Western Technology Investment, Ben Sun, and Female Founders Fund. Ellie Wheeler from Greycroft Partners and Anu Duggal from Female Founders Fund will join ELOQUII’s current Board of Directors, which includes Founder John Auerbach and CEO Mariah Chase.
“Our goal is for ELOQUII to be the leader in fashion, sizes 14-24,” said Chase. “We listen to what customers think about the brand and take this knowledge to build an experience that delivers an on-trend and price-conscious experience for a consumer who, quite frankly, hasn’t had the fashion options she should.”
And that consumer knows what she wants and seems to have found it in ELOQUII. In its first iteration under The Limited, ELOQUII became a successful plus-size fashion brand with a loyal and vocal consumer audience. Despite the brand’s early success and month over month growth following its 2011 launch, The Limited closed the division in early 2013 due to corporate restructuring.
Never underestimate the power of social media.
The brand’s supporters, which included influential fashion bloggers and loyal customers, took to digital and social media to express their loss of a favorite fashion resource, demanding ELOQUII’s return. Encouraged by the loyalty of their customer base, the original team connected with founding investor John Auerbach to explain the vision of rebuilding ELOQUII. As a result, the new ELOQUII successfully re-launched on February 20, 2014, to once again address the needs of this underserved consumer market.
With this funding round, ELOQUII will continue to deliver trend-right styles, as well as expand their offerings and marketing, and the overall digital experience, thanks to that expertise that Wheeler and Duggal will bring to the table.
“ELOQUII is uniquely positioned and timed to answer the increasing demand for fashion from this tremendous market segment,” said Wheeler. “We believe the addressable market for plus size women’s clothing will continue to increase as more women recognize that fashion can and should exist at every size.”
