Nick Beighton joins Secret Sales as chair

Secret Sales has announced the appointment of Nick Beighton as chairman.

Beighton, who most recently held the role of CEO at ASOS, joined as Secret Sales marks year-on-year growth of over 150 per cent LFL by solving a critical challenge in the fashion value chain for brands and retailers. 

LRG Online Ltd acquired Secret Sales in 2020 and has reshaped the business to solve the legacy problem of excess stock, an inevitability of the fashion industry. Secret Sales partners with fashion brands, beauty brands and retailers helping them monetise this stock via its premium marketplace. Businesses retain control of the branding, pricing and inventory so they can drive profit from non-full-price goods without undermining their core proposition or eroding brand value. 

“Secret Sales is nothing short of a game-changer for the fashion and beauty industry”’ said Beighton. “For too long, excess stock has been seen in terms of cash recovery using clearance channels that erode the brand. But with Secret Sales, the industry finally has access to a positive strategy for non-full-price inventory. Businesses using Secret Sales can now make significant margin, attract new customers for their own full-price sales and maintain their brand equity through a simple, elegant and sustainable off-price solution that does not impact the retailer’s own full-price strategy. That is a huge deal for anyone in sector and the scope for growth is astronomical,” he continued. 

The Secret Sales proposition is delivering non-full-price strategies for over 1600 brands. The business looks set to achieve growth of over 100 per cent this financial year despite a challenging retail environment. It’s seller base increased by almost 40 per cent in the last year and it boasts partnerships with fashion and beauty stalwarts including Superdry, Ted Baker, LK Bennett, Dolce & Gabbana, G-Star Raw and Versace 19v69. Shoppers are snapping up the option of branded goods at lower prices; the business saw a 55 per cent increase in active customers last year.  

Investors are already backing Secret Sales which secured €10million in funding in 2021 to further boost growth. This has now been followed up with additional funding to accelerate the international growth strategy. Secret Sales already operates in the UK, Netherlands and Belgium and plans to expand to a further 12 international territories over the next two years. 

“I am delighted that Nick is joining Secret Sales. He has a wealth of experience from his time at ASOS in building a global eCommerce fashion retailer. This is highly relevant as Secret Sales continues its journey to be the world’s largest marketplace for non-full-price fashion. Nick is a natural choice for Secret Sales because he understands the critical problem we are solving for the sector. Before Secret Sales Marketplace, there wasn’t a fully joined-up proposition for turning non-full-price stock into a boardroom positive. Secret Sales offers a unique solution and Nick and I will work to deliver huge international growth,” said Chris Griffin, CEO, Secret Sales.