Singapore Una Brands, Singapore-based e-commerce aggregator, has struck its first strategic alliance with South Korean domestic counterpart, KlickBrands. Together they will invest KRW₩120b, or US$100m, in the countries’ e-commerce market over two years.

The alliance will link Una Brands’ global cross-border network with KlickBrands’ understanding of the South Korean market. Together, they will help grow the local e-commerce brands domestically and into Southeast Asian markets namely Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. Una Brands and KlickBrands will scale at least 25 or more profitable e-commerce brands, across categories such as health, K-beauty, baby, pets, and home and living brands. South Korea was identified as a key market for Una Brands, being the fifth-largest e-commerce market globally with an annual growth rate of around 14% and an expected market value of US$250b by 2025.

Kiren Tanna, co-founder and CEO of Una Brands, said, “Of all the local e-commerce aggregators, we chose KlickBrands as our strategic partner because of our shared vision, mission, and values. Their hands-on approach to working with the brands they acquire mirrors our own work ethic. This will make KlickBrands an instrumental partner in strengthening Una Brands’ presence in, and understanding of, the South Korean e-commerce landscape. In return, KlickBrands will benefit from our robust operational, technological, and acquisition capabilities.”

KlickBrands, founded in 2021 by entrepreneurs and venture capitalists Brian Hyun and Jung Ho Joo, is focused on creating opportunities for brand owners to accelerate their growth across eCommerce platforms and markets.

Brian Hyun, co-founder and CEO of KlickBrands, commented that the partnership with Una Brands bears testament to the growing possibilities for e-commerce brands in South Korea.

“When Una Brands approached us, we immediately recognised that their capabilities were a great match for our own, particularly with the strong team that they have built, their expertise in e-commerce in the Asia Pacific (APAC), and their global distribution network. We bring to the partnership local e-commerce expertise, as well as the understanding and empathy of local brand owners’ mindsets. We are very excited to have the backing of Una Brands as we continue to reach out to more brand owners in South Korea to support their next phase in expansion,” Hyun said.

Una Brands, an e-commerce aggregator in APAC that comprises a team with a wealth of experience behind it, has established its presence in key markets namely Singapore, Australia, India, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Taiwan in under a year, with South Korea being the next strategic market for the business’ expansion and development. Since its launch in 2021, Una Brands has to date acquired over 20 firms, with the earliest brands seeing over a 50 per cent increase in sales and profits.

Singapore – E-commerce aggregator Una Brands has acquired Singapore’s furniture brands, EverDesk+ and ErgoTune, in a deal worth over eight-figures. This transaction deems to be one of the largest acquisitions of Singapore-based direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands. 

EverDesk+ and ErgoTune have become household names after growing exponentially against the backdrop of the work-from-home requirements during the pandemic, and the subsequent shift to hybrid working arrangements fuelling and sustaining demand for ergonomic furniture.

The acquisition aims to aid EverDesk+ and ErgoTune’s expansion into new regional and international markets and to help achieve the goal of becoming the leading global players in the quality ergonomic furniture market. In addition, Una Brands’ growth strategy will see the brands launch onto additional e-commerce platforms in the coming months, including Amazon in the first half of 2022, as well as further their online-to-offline (O2O) offering with a showroom in Sydney from April, where customers can experience both brands’ products.

Together, the companies will work in partnership to lead the businesses through this period of growth and into their next evolution, with the brands benefiting from Una Brands’ global presence and the expertise of its team who hail from the likes of Irvins, Lazada, and Zalora. 

Yi Hao Lye, the co-founder of ErgoTune and EverDesk+, shared that the brands’ success has already far exceeded their expectations, but when the opportunity to work with Una Brands came along, they realised that a partnership with them would only further the growth plans they have. 

“With Una Brands’ financial backing and operational expertise, we are poised to grow our brands in various regional marketplaces and enter new markets at an accelerated timeline. Most importantly, Una Brands will accelerate our mission of helping people create a workspace where they feel great and can achieve great things. We are very excited to have Una Brands support the next phase of our expansion story,” said Lye.

Meanwhile, Kiren Tanna, Una Brands’ co-founder and CEO, stated that they are looking forward to capitalising on ErgoTune’s and EverDesk+’s strong momentum over recent years, and turbo-charging the brands’ growth with Una Brands’ in-house e-commerce expertise. 

“We aspire to grow ErgoTune and EverDesk+ into the region’s best-selling ergonomic chairs and desks in the next three years,” said Tanna.