Black-owned Brands Accelerator
Black-owned Brands Accelerator
A six-month accelerator programme designed by Zalando in partnership with ADAN that upskills small Black-owned brands with the knowledge they need to expand their businesses onto big e-commerce platforms such as Zalando.
The Black-owned Brands Accelerator is the right programme for you
Increase your operational experience and knowledge
Build your expertise and operational experience to work with online retailers such as Zalando. You will learn what it takes to comply with onboarding requirements and become familiar with topics such as product quality and safety, logistics, and finance operations.
Build a stronger brand presence and marketing strategy
You will learn from our experts how to build a stronger brand identity and marketing strategy to increase your brand’s visibility and PR reach.
Grow your network and access to experts for impactful support
Learn valuable insights from Zalando's experts and gain access to their network as Europe’s leading platform for fashion and lifestyle e-commerce. Receive tailored guidance from seasoned professionals in creating diverse and sustainable growth.
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Who can apply for the Accelerator programme ?
The Black-owned Brands Accelerator is designed for small fashion brands that are looking to expand their business to major e-commerce platforms such as Zalando, but feel they are missing knowledge or skills to make this happen. Given Zalando’s ongoing strategic focus on becoming a partner of choice for fashion brands that cater for or stem from underrepresented groups, this accelerator programme is aimed at supporting fashion brands, designers and owners from the Black community.
Requirements to apply to the Black-owned Brands Accelerator:
[1] Your brand is a fashion brand.
[2] Your brand is Black-owned (at least 50% of the owners identify as Black).
[3] Your business has an EU VAT number.
[4] Your yearly business turnover is at least 20.000 and does not exceed 499.000 EUR.
[5] You are actively selling via your own website and/or other online retailers.
[6] You would be interested in selling your assortment on Zalando.
[7] You are able to submit a brand presentation with your application.
[8] You are able to commit to a six-month digital accelerator programme with on average 2-5 hours online learning per month and an in-person pitch event in Berlin, at the end of the programme.
Applications are open from 12th June 2024 to 31st of August 2024 23:59 CET.
To apply please complete the application form below.
Please note:
[1] By applying to the accelerator you won’t automatically be assigned a place in the programme. A selection panel with industry experts will assess all applications and the five most promising fashion brands will make it to the programme.
[2] We hope to onboard five exciting brands to the Zalando platform by the end of the programme. However, completing the programme doesn’t guarantee that you will be able to sell your assortment on Zalando, as this depends on multiple factors, such as your performance on the Pitch Day, your assortment compared with the current fashion trends, and the offerings already available on Zalando.
What’s in it
for you?
meet the selection panel
The selection of the five applicants is fundamental to the success of the Black-owned Brands Accelerator programme. For this, we’ve put together a designated selection panel that will be in charge of reviewing all applications and identifying the most promising candidates. On this page you can get to know the various industry experts who will evaluate your brands’ creativity, innovation and market potential.
How it works
Fill out the application form
Applications are open from 12th June 2024 to 31st August 2024 23:59 CEST.
SELECTION
Our selection panel will decide together on a careful selection of the five most promising brands among the applicants. We wish you all the best of luck!
Modules Calendar
If your brand has been selected, you will receive a calendar with the exact dates of the online modules, the open hours with the tutors and the date of the in-person Pitch Day in Berlin.
Confirmation of your participation
If your brand has been selected to participate in the Black-owned Brands Accelerator, you will hear from us via email by 20th September 2024. If you do not hear from us, please consider your application as declined.
The Black-owned Brands Accelerator is a digital accelerator programme designed for small fashion brands that are looking to expand their business to major e-commerce platforms such as Zalando, but feel they are missing knowledge or skills to make this happen. Given Zalando’s ongoing strategic focus on becoming a partner of choice for fashion brands that cater for or stem from underrepresented groups, this accelerator programme is aimed at supporting fashion brand designers and owners from the Black community.
The programme consists of six digital upskilling modules. The modules focus on brand building, onboarding requirements, marketing, product quality and safety, logistics, and finance operations. After completing the modules, an in-person Pitch Day will take place in Berlin to give brands the opportunity to showcase their assortment to Zalando’s buyers.
Through the upskilling modules brands will have gained the necessary knowledge to successfully carry out the onboarding process at Zalando and any online retailer. At the end of the programme, brands are given the opportunity to showcase their assortment to Zalando’s Buyers. Yet, it cannot be guaranteed that the brands will be onboarded on Zalando as this depends on the fulfilment of their learning objectives.
You can submit your application via this form by 31st August 2024 23:59 CEST. It is required that:
[1] Your brand is a fashion brand.
[2] Your brand is Black-owned (at least 50% of the owners identify as Black).
[3] Your business has an EU VAT number.
[4] Your yearly business turnover is at least 20.000 and does not exceed 499.000 EUR.
[5] You are actively selling via your own website and/or other online retailers.
[6] You would be interested in selling your assortment on Zalando.
[7] You are able to submit a brand presentation with your application.
[8] You are able to commit to a six-month digital accelerator programme with on average 2-5 hours online learning per month and an in-person pitch event in Berlin, at the end of the programme.
Please note that you won’t automatically be assigned a place in the programme. Applications will undergo a selection and only 5 brands will make it into the programme.
Yes, all modules are digital and will take place on Google meet. The only part of the programme that is in-person is the Pitch Day in Berlin at the end of the programme (planned in February 2025).
English.