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OSKELLY Aims To Shake Up The MENA Luxury Fashion Market
The Eastern European platform will use investments of over $1 million to revolutionize the Middle East’s $89 billion fashion industry.
OSKELLY, the luxury fashion resale platform from Eastern Europe, has set its sights on the United Arab Emirates and is poised to reshape the nation’s fashion landscape. Armed with an investment fund exceeding $1 million, the company plans to digitize the fashion resale sector, advocate for sustainable consumption in the Middle East, and rejuvenate the region’s $89 billion fashion resale industry.
OSKELLY will begin its expansion by introducing a fashion wardrobe ecosystem aided by digital and AI solutions catering to Emirati users. The OSKELLY app allows for both buying and selling of pre-owned luxury items, with social tools enabling users to bid on items and showcase their collections.
Founded in 2017 by the sibling duo of Albert Oskanov and Zaira Keligova, OSKELLY boasts a European user base exceeding 500,000 and an extensive portfolio spanning over 3,000 luxury brands.
To combat counterfeit items, OSKELLY has devised a comprehensive offline authentication process, employing an in-house team of experts to scrutinize the quality, authenticity, and condition of luxury goods both during the uploading phase and before dispatch. Once certified, items undergo pre-sale preparation, including steaming and minimal restoration, before being sent to buyers in branded packaging.
Despite phenomenal growth, OSKELLY’s mission is about much more than commercial success. Albert Oskanov, the CEO and co-founder, emphasizes: “It’s about our mission to create a community-driven fashion ecosystem in the Middle East. We’re here to rewrite the luxury fashion resale story, and we’re driven by a genuine desire to make a difference at every level — from our wardrobes to the world in which we live”.
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The Middle East’s fashion industry market, valued at $89 billion, stands as fertile ground for OSKELLY’s expansion. The second-hand luxury bag market in Dubai alone is estimated to be worth $68 million, with the UAE’s total market revenue now around $3.5 billion.
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NEOPAY Wants To Follow Merchants Across Channels And Borders
A controlling 65% stake in noon payments would give NEOPAY access to marketplace sellers, online merchants and the payment flows they generate.
It’s been a long time since checkouts were single defined places. A merchant might take payments at a physical register, on its own website and through an online marketplace, sometimes in more than one country. NEOPAY wants to follow those transactions wherever they happen.
The UAE payments company has entered into an agreement to acquire a 65% controlling stake in noon payments. NEOPAY already runs the acquiring infrastructure that lets merchants accept card payments, along with omnichannel acceptance and a merchant services platform. This new deal would add noon payments’ embedded payments platform, e-commerce gateway and merchant network across the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. That would considerably expand both NEOPAY’s digital commerce capabilities and its regional reach.
For merchants, the attraction is a single provider for online and in-store payments, plus faster settlements, data and analytics, and value-added financial services.
“Payments should be simple, reliable, and built for the markets they serve,” said Faraz Khalid, CEO of noon. His counterpart at NEOPAY, Vibhor Mundhada, added: “We have built a strong payments business in the UAE, and our ambition is now to take that capability across the region”. The acquisition, Mundhada added, would “expand our footprint into Saudi Arabia and Egypt” while reinforcing NEOPAY’s position at home.
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NEOPAY is also keen to point out potential payment volume increases. The company says noon payments’ integrations with marketplace sellers and online merchants create high transaction density in some of the region’s fastest-growing digital commerce segments. It also believes control of the business would give it access to those merchant relationships and payment flows, and speed up the rollout of alternative payment methods and installment options.
The combined roadmap targets faster merchant onboarding, better payment performance, tighter fraud controls and embedded financial services. The deal could also strengthen cross-border payments and settlement along key regional commerce corridors.
NEOPAY Wants To Follow Merchants Across Channels And Borders
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