Walmart acquires Bonobos for $300 million; continues to focus on fashion

Walmart, the world’s largest retailer, is continuously aiming to expand its fashion portfolio and compete with Amazon online. The company acquired menswear site Bonobos for $310 million in cash to further up the ante against Amazon and double down on its efforts to continue building out an online retail fashion business. In fashion, specifically both the players have been making several acquisitions and launching labels to expand their customer bases.

The retail giant’s Bonobos deal follows and complements several other acquisitions that the company has made in the area of online fashion. It includes Modcloth in March 2017, outdoor retailer Moosejaw for $51 million in February 2017, Hayneedle in March 2016, and Zappos-style shoe retailer ShoeBuy for $70 million from IAC. Many of these have been fueled by its acquisition of Jet.com, which it purchased in 2016 for $3 billion.

Andy Dunn, founder and CEO of Bonobos, said that “We began Bonobos ten years ago, to give men a completely different product and shopping experience: better fitting, higher quality clothing, in new and imaginative ways. That will always remain our mission. We are excited about applying all that we have learned to help shepherd in the next era of retail”.