DROPOUT GOES PUBLIC BY LANDING ON MAMACROWD

Milan, September 2021 – With a historic initiative for Italian streetwear, dropout, business specialized in the resale of refined and limited edition clothing and sneakers, announces the launch of a campaign on Mamacrowd, the most important Italian platform for investment via equity crowdfunding.

The secondary market for reselling sneakers is fueled by the excitement created by an intentionally kept low supply of certain models.

More and more sneakers and streetwear brands are releasing products in limited quantities, in contrast to important advertising campaigns around them, with the aim of increasing interest around their brand and increasing the perceived value of the same also through the secondary market thus generated.

dropout, which develops in Milan with a physical and online store, has been operating in this market since 2018.

“Through Mamacrowd we have the opportunity to actively involve our community and all sneakers enthusiasts, who I am sure will be very interested in taking part in the project”, explains Kola Tytler, founder and CEO, “With this equity crowdfunding campaign we aim at a collection target between 300k and 500k. With the funds we aim at an expansion of the physical retail locations, the online store, dropout® branded products. We also plan to set up pop-up shops where we identify high potential, going to bring the product even to the most occasional customer. Another natural step will be the expansion of the business in the second-hand market, leveraging the concept of sustainable fashion”.

To support the activity, the dropout team has developed HypeAnalyzer (SIAE registration D000014993), a technical analysis software for the secondary market for sneakers. On the website and iOS app, HypeAnalyzer tracks and compares thousands of sneakers daily, in order to identify those with the greatest potential for future resale, treating the sneakers as real assets.

HypeAnalyzer’s algorithms define various aspects of the activity: from what products are accepted on consignment and their related price margins to discounts and shop windows. The use of data ensures that the products on sale and on display are objectively of interest: anyone who wants trendy and limited edition products is on the safe side by entering dropout or visiting dropoutmilano.com.

Consignment is fully automated and digital: users can manage and check the status of their products on sale, check pending payments and communicate with dropout’s team conveniently from the website or via the iOS app.

“Consignment is a key aspect of the business as it increases consumer loyalty and allows us to obtain rare products without the need for an investment of resources”, comments Stefano Zeppieri, co-founder and CTO of dropout.

With over 1,500,000 euros in turnover since 2018, 2 million website visitors, 150 million social media impressions and 5 million YouTube views since 2018, dropout is among the best-known Italian resale brands in the secondary market of sneakers and limited edition streetwear clothing.

The campaign launch is scheduled for October 5th at mamacrowd.com/dropout.

Author: Kola Tytler

I am a NHS doctor, based in London and currently working in Surrey. I hold a medicine MBBS degree from King’s College London and I have successfully completed short courses in the fields of law and business at the London School of Economics and Imperial College London universities. I am currently undertaking a Master of Business Administration degree at the University of Birmingham. I am the founder and co-owner of dropout®, a store specialized in the sale of limited edition sneakers and streetwear. Located in Milan, Italy, dropout® quickly proved a huge success and is currently one of the country's most reknown stores, as well as a must-destination for fashion enthusiasts. The streetwear resale market represents a tens of billions worth "industry" which is largely underestimated by traditional investors. One of my goals is to gain a better understanding of how this vastly unregulated market operates while contributing to reshaping the rules of fashion economics. With a mathematical approach, via my project HypeAnalyzer we objectively analyze and report trends in the resell market of Nike, Adidas, Jordan Brand, Balenciaga and Asics sneakers, as well as assessing the value of selected items from the weekly drop of the streetwear label Supreme NewYork 1994. Between 2015 and 2018 I was one of 2 masterminds behind YEEZY Mafia, media outlet surrounding the sneakers released by Kanye West which now features millions of followers and is the worldwide reference for all things YEEZY. Following a highly successful equity crowdfunding campaign, dropout is now backed by Azimut SPA (which invested via its ELTIF Alicrowd) and A.Celli group, as well as over 150 retail investors. dropout's latest post-money valuation is around €2.3M. I look forward to connect with like-minded individuals and to explore potential expansions for my current business activities.