Our history: from start-up to grown-up

"Order shoes on the internet? That’ll never work!” The feedback that the university friends Robert Gentz and David Schneider received in response to their business idea was, let’s just say, restrained. Their timing could have been better too: Zalando was founded in fall 2008 – just a couple of days before the start of the financial crisis. In the early days, the small team worked from a shared apartment on Berlin’s Torstraße that had been turned into an office and warehouse. Around two years after the company was founded, Robert and David convinced another university friend, Rubin Ritter, of the potential of their business idea, and he joined them as the third member of the Management Board.

Starting small, thinking big

The founders’ private cell phone numbers became customer hotlines, and they carried the packages to the post office themselves. By offering free delivery and up to 100-day right of return, Zalando set new standards in online retail. The customers liked it – and the team grew rapidly and soon needed new office space.

Failing forward

Finally, the adventure got under way and Zalando conquered its first international markets. Following its successful launch in Austria and Switzerland, The Netherlands became the first non-German-speaking market in 2010 – and it taught a valuable lesson that would come to define the future strategy. The TV advertising campaign “scream with joy!”, which had proven a big hit in Germany, was not at all well received by Dutch audiences. It even won an award for the year’s most irritating advert, twice in a row. 

Lessons learned

Even if some markets border each other geographically, they may differ drastically in taste, desires and expectations of customers. Service, marketing, communication - all has to be adapted to suit local conditions. Zalando is now active in 25 European markets, offering its customers more than 20 local payment options, collaborates with different regional logistics service providers and includes 19 languages, not only in its online shop but also in customer service.

Bringing fashion to 25 countries

The requirements are growing

As the number of customers increases, so do requirements regarding logistics and technology. To effectively meet  the diverse demands of our ever-increasing customer base, Zalando has expanded its international logistics network. What began in the basement of a shared apartment now includes a network of 12 fulfillment centers in Europe.

A start-up at heart

For our customers in 25 European markets, buying products in Zalando’s online shop is a fun experience not only because of our convenient delivery options and services. Innovative technology plays its role too. Over the past few years, Zalando has attracted more than 3,000 tech experts from all over the world and currently employs more than 15,000 people. Despite the company’s current size, it’s the curiosity and start-up spirit of the early days that is still in the foreground. 

At Zalando, we nurture an active culture of testing. We try out lots of things and take risks – provided that they are calculable and we can justify them. We want to offer our customers real added value – ideally by taking more unconventional approaches.

Zalando has grown up

We are evolving from a fashion retailer to an online platform. Through numerous different channels and by offering a diverse array of services, Zalando connects all the major players in the fashion industry – from end customers, through retailers, brands, stylists and factories, to advertisers.

Today, what once was a Berlin start-up has grown into a European company – Zalando SE. Zalando employs people from around 140 countries and is headed by Management Board members Robert Gentz, David Schneider, Dr. Astrid Arndt, Dr. Sandra Dembeck and David Schröder. Meanwhile, the original office on Torstraße has been reopened and is now home to small project teams working on innovative services and testing out new technology.