Industrifonden invests in online footwear retailer Footway

The e-commerce company Footway (www.footway.se), which sells footwear online, has secured SEK 20 million in a new share issue from Industrifonden, eEquity and its founders. Industrifonden’s share amounts to SEK 10 million. The man behind Footway is Daniel Mühlbach, who had previously been successful in creating the website Lensway. The money will be used for Footway’s expansion in the Nordic region.
 

Footway was founded in 2010 by the team behind Lensway, which sells contact lenses and eyeglasses online, led by the entrepreneur Daniel Mühlbach. They built up Lensway from the start to become a profitable company with sales of over SEK 500 million. In 2010 Daniel sold his interest in Lensway and reinvested in Footway.

Launched on the market in spring 2011, Footway offers consumers a web store with shoes for children, men and women. The product range currently comprises around 2,000 models from 180 brands. The company’s goal is to generate sales that exceed Lensway’s during the next decade.

“The footwear market in the Nordic region is worth over SEK 30 billion,” says Daniel Mühlbach, founder of Footway. “I look forward to building a successful new online retailer together with my team, where we can benefit from our experience from Lensway.”

“We see great opportunities working together with an experienced entrepreneur like Daniel to tackle a big market like the Nordic footwear market, where only a small percentage of purchases are currently made online. It is almost a question of fairness to be able to buy whatever shoes you want regardless of where you live,” says Patrik Hedelin, partner at eEquity.

“Footway is certainly in line our strategy to invest in scalable business models with great potential in the Swedish and international markets,” says Johan Englund, Investment Manager at Industrifonden. “With a sharply growing market and experienced entrepreneurs in charge, we are very positive about Footway’s prospects for success.”            

This is Industrifonden’s sixth new investment in the financial year July 1, 2011 – June 30, 2012.

Stockholm, Sweden 2012-02-17