Aidijuma acquires majority stake in UK’s e-commerce retailer

KUALA LUMPUR: Aidijuma Colors Group of Companies, which owns the ‘Bawal’ hijab range under the Aidijuma™ label, together with its modest wear e-commerce site, HIJUP, have acquired a majority stake in UK-based modest fashion and ecommerce company Haute Elan ahead of HIJUP’s expansion into the UK market.

Established in 2012, modest fashion brand Aidijuma adopts the creative business model of online merging offline to offer the best possible experience to customers.

“With its omnichannel strategy, Aidjuma™ is the only brand in Malaysia that offers online shopping and owns 12 retail concept stores nationwide, complemented by 12 Scarf Machine. send. sell. story mobile concept stores to provide a seamless experience for consumers,” the company said in a statement yesterday.

Aidijuma Colors Group of Companies did not disclose the stake acquired nor the value.

With plans for listing by 2020, the latest venture capital investment for the company is in Haute Elan, which is also the organiser of the London Modest Fashion Week.

The London Modest Fashion Week is the UK’s very first modest fashion week, held for the first time last year and had brought together more than 40 designers from several countries, including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, and Malaysia.

Modest fashion has become increasingly popular among millennial Muslim women worldwide who see it as a way to dress stylishly.

“Modest fashion is a growing trend that offers women options, choices and freedom to express themselves while being fashionable which massmarket retailers and designers are already taking notice of the market’s potential so we are investing in the future by taking a stake in it now.

“We look forward to build strategic business partnerships around the world to expand this business model for Modest Fashion globally,” it said.

The latest investment in Haute Elan brings Aidijuma™Colors Group’s total venture capital investment amount to date to US$20 million, which includes stakes in Brunei’s event organising company and retailer BIFASH, Singapore ere tail er MODES Ty le, Malaysian cosmetic and skincare brands Simplysiti® and Zawara®, as well as Indonesia’s Hijup.com in which it also controls. — Bernama