Julie Stevanja co-founded Stylerunner which has been sold to Accent Group.Credit:Peter Rae Tuesday
The startup claimed to be generating $50 million in revenue at one stage as Ms Stevanja's presonal wealth was estimated at $30 million. But it collapsed into administration last month after an attempt at raising $10 million in fresh capital fell short and the business ran into cashflow problems.
Accent Group,which operates footwear brands including Hype DC,The Athlete's Foot and Platypus and had turnover of $796 million last year,will retain Ms Stevanja and her team of 14 staff.
Ms Stevanja said she was"really excited"about the new ownership of Stylerunner but"it was a tough journey to get where we landed".
"We are ecstatic to be part of the group,"Ms Stevnja said."They are going to bring enormous investment,resources and support behind the Stylerunner brand and help us grow this to be our biggest and best yet."
A pureplay online startup is always faced with challenges when it is growing fast.
Mark Teperson
"The fundamentals of the business are there and are great but retail businesses require investment and there was a bit of conservatism in the Australian market,"she said."A lot of funding is at the early stage in Australia and a lot of capital is at the larger stage,$20 million plus from private equity,but it is very slim in that middle stage which is the valley of death."
Ms Stevanja said Stylerunner had"exciting things"in the pipeline."You can expect expanded ranges,new packaging,sustainability options and in the not to distant future even bricks and mortar stores,"she said