Blk Dnm acquired by Blockchain Technology Company ChromaWay
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Blk Dnm enters a new phase of the relaunch with an acquisition.
The Swedish-American fashion brand, which relaunched in February as a luxury brand, has been acquired by blockchain technology company ChromaWay. The terms of the agreement, which involves full ownership, were not made public.
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This is ChromaWay’s first acquisition in the fashion industry. Founded in 2014, the company develops and works with blockchain technology platforms.
“We share that we want to create something that is completely new to the market,” said Henrik Hjelte, CEO and co-founder of ChromaWay. “I think that fashion is an industry where you can invent quite a lot, so we wanted to try out this concept of breaking the digital world and the physical world, and it is this concept of connected fashion that we are now working with Blk Dnm about. In order to innovate quite a lot in this sector, I think it could be strategic for us to actually have majority ownership in a company and be able to grow quickly.”
Regarding the term “connected fashion”, Hjelte further emphasized the connection between the physical and digital worlds, stating that it is a way to “bridge between physical garments and digital garments”.
While Hjelte and Blk Dnm CEO Toni Collin were mum about how ChromaWay’s technologies will be integrated into the fashion brand, the acquisition is expected to integrate blockchain capabilities into Blk Dnm’s strategy and products. Blk Dnm will reveal details of the technology before the next collection’s release.
“Physically and aesthetically, it has no impact on us,” Collin said of the impact of the acquisition. “It’s still going to be the beautiful clothes that we design today and tomorrow, but it will add another layer we think, especially when it comes to the community and the way we can communicate with our fan base so to speak. It adds another layer, but it’s not going to change. Blk Dnm is just going to be Blk Dnm. We’re not building two separate brands – it’s one brand.”
The acquisition follows Blk Dnm’s relaunch, when the brand unveiled its new “entry luxury” positioning with the launch of the fall 2023 women’s and men’s collections designed under creative director Jessy Heuvelink.
Before the relaunch, Blk Dnm was a mid-market brand. The relaunch led to Heuvelink, a new logo, an elevated aesthetic and new retail strategy. Collin stated that the brand is stocked in Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s in the US, as well as specialty retailers and other department stores globally.
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