Farfetch bought Browns as a crown jewel — the flywheel drained it

Browns had been a London institution for 53 years — the Burstein family boutique on Brook Street in Mayfair, built on spotting designers early. In 2015 Farfetch bought it from the family, its first acquisition, as proof that the luxury marketplace could fuse digital and physical retail.

Under Farfetch the boutique became machinery. Buying moved to an Open-to-Buy model — inventory purchased to sell on both Browns and Farfetch, at margins better than marketplace commissions — and in 2021 the Brook Street store was rebuilt as the 'Store of the Future,' with connected mirrors and app-driven private shopping suites. E-commerce revenue passed $34.5M in 2022, but a former Farfetch employee told Glossy acquired brands had been 'integrated as part of its flywheel,' used 'to help fuel overall value for the group' — and Browns lost its individual focus.

Farfetch tried to course-correct in January 2023, hiring Elizabeth von der Goltz as CEO to restore Browns' heritage curation. Instead the year ended with its people leaving — buying director Ida Petersson and brand marketing chief Sarah Johnson, both six years in, departed in December 2023 — and when Coupang's rescue of Farfetch was announced on December 20, 2023, Browns wasn't mentioned at all. Sources told Glossy the boutique was worth less than when Farfetch bought it, with Frasers floated as a possible buyer.