CMC leads Series C for Chinese B2B apparel player

The company received RMB55 million ($7.8 million) in Series B funding last year led by Shunwei Capital, with additional contributions from Matrix Partners China and Huaxing. This followed a Series A of undisclosed size from Matrix in 2018 and a RMB4 million angel round from TiSiWi Venture a year earlier, AVCJ Research's records show.

China's apparel retail market was worth more than RMB1.6 trillion in 2019, according to Qianzhan, an independent consultancy. However, supply chains are fragmented - with heavy concentrations in certain regions - and warehousing and logistics systems are inefficient.

Founded in 2016, Yishou positions itself as a solution to this bottleneck through a digital platform that offers a customized, one-stop service at low cost. The company has its own storage system capable of same-day dispatch. If required, it can send items directly from the warehouse to the consumer.

Yishou - which generates RMB200 billion in monthly gross merchandise value (GMV) - has become popular among key opinion leaders (KOLs) who leverage social media channels to develop their own fashion businesses. They can outsource everything from delivery to after-sale services to the company.

Other start-ups seeking to digitize the apparel space include Linctex Digital, a Shanghai-based design services platform that raised RMB100 million ($14 million) in funding led by Gaorong Capital in February. There have also been sizeable rounds for two competing B2B fabric trading platforms, Baibu and Smart Fabric.

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