Press Release | New Delhi, 04/27/2016

Bertelsmann invests in Indian fashion social network Roposo

Expansion of businesses in strategic growth region

Bertelsmann is making another investment in an Indian digital company: The international media, services and education group acquires a stake in Roposo, a mobile first social network focused on fashion. The company founded in 2014 has built a platform on which users share and discover content around fashion and lifestyle as well as shop products from across 500 web stores and 5,000 brands. India is one of Bertelsmann’s strategic growth regions alongside Brazil and China.

Bertelsmann's investment is part of a round of funding in the low double-digit million range set up last August by Tiger Global. Roposo will use the fresh capital for expanding the business, focusing especially on strengthening its team and technological infrastructure.

Pankaj Makkar, Managing Director of Bertelsmann India Investments, said: “Roposo’s product and business model harbor enormous potential. Its management team has very quickly turned the company into one of the best-known fashion social networks in India. With leaders such as multi-channel network StyleHaul in the US and social network Mogujie in China in the Bertelsmann family, we are excited to now work with Roposo to make it the leading fashion destination in India.”

Roposo is the latest of several Bertelsmann investments in India. The Group most recently invested in the e-commerce enabler KartRocket, the home and furnishing marketplace Pepperfry, and the music-streaming service Saavn. Other investments include the digital real-estate marketplace India Property, the higher education provider iNurture as well as Authorgen Technologies and its online education platform WizIq. Above and beyond this, several Bertelsmann divisions are active in India: Fremantle Media, the production arm of RTL Group, is successful in India with shows like “Indian Idol,” “The X Factor” and “Got Talent.” Penguin Random House is the largest English-language publisher in the country, and Arvato provides customer & marketing services to international clients. In total, Bertelsmann employs 2,370 people in India.

About Bertelsmann
Bertelsmann is a media, services and education company that operates in about 50 countries around the world. It includes the broadcaster RTL Group, the trade book publisher Penguin Random House, the magazine publisher Gruner + Jahr, the music company BMG, the service provider Arvato, the Bertelsmann Printing Group, the Bertelsmann Education Group, and Bertelsmann Investments, an international network of funds. The company has 117,000 employees and generated revenues of €17.1 billion in the 2015 financial year. Bertelsmann stands for creativity and entrepreneurship. This combination promotes first-class media content and innovative service solutions that inspire customers around the world.

About Bertelsmann Investments
Bertelsmann Investments unites Bertelsmann’s start-up investments around the world. The focus of its activities are the strategic growth regions of Brazil, China and India, as well as the United States and Europe. Shareholdings are acquired through the strategic investment vehicles Bertelsmann Brazil Investments (BBI), Bertelsmann Asia Investments (BAI), Bertelsmann India Investments (BII) and Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (BDMI). Bertelsmann owns stakes in more than 100 innovative companies via these funds.