Singapore – CREA, the one-stop omnichannel solution for brands established by Lazada co-founders, has recently secured a US$25m investment from SuperOrdinary, the global distributor of leading beauty brands. SuperOrdinary will be taking a minority stake in the SEA-based commerce enabler, and within this, the two announced that it will be developing a new cross-border global platform network.
SuperOrdinary’s portfolio includes beauty brands Drunk Elephant, Malin + Goetz, The Ordinary, and Supergoop!, among others. The new global platform network will allow each company’s respective portfolio to expand into new markets.
The partnership means consumers in Thailand and Southeast Asia will have an increased choice of global beauty brands to choose from when shopping. CREA said that brands will also benefit from easier regional market entry via a single solution.
Aimone Ripa di Meana, CREA’s co-founder, said that Southeast Asia presents a unique opportunity for global brands with young digital-savvy consumers increasing their consumption power and avidly engaging with global trends through digital media.
“Entering these markets with a digital-first approach is key and CREA is uniquely positioned to enable this opportunity with an omnichannel strategy,” di Meana said.
CREA Co-Founder Alessandro Piscini added, “CREA has built a unique value proposition through our proprietary technology, CUSP, logistics infrastructure, and a world-class team that makes entering Southeast Asia simple for global brands.”
CUSP is CREA’s omnichannel technology platform which carries business insight, order management, purchase management, and catalogue management capabilities.
Julian Reis, CEO and founder of SuperOrdinary, commented, “Digital commerce in Southeast Asia is experiencing an unprecedented boom and CREA’s team has played an integral role in allowing its portfolio of more than 70 prominent lifestyle brands to capitalize on this trend.”
CREA started in Thailand in 2019 with current presence expanding to Malaysia and Singapore. The company said it’s eyeing to open in Vietnam, Indonesia, and The Philippines in the near future.