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Amazon aggregator Thrasio's arduous road to filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy despite raising billions
Leading e-commerce aggregator for Amazon, Thrasio, has filed for bankruptcy. The third party seller has been in deep water since it laid off employees in 2022.
The reversal of fate is as real as oxygen in the air; the latest victim of this professional tragedy is Thrasio, an early leader of e-commerce aggregators for Amazon. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a New Jersey court on Wednesday after undertaking the arduous journey that started showing red signs in 2022 as the pandemic came to a close and physical reality started pedalling fast ahead. The startup once proudly bore its $10 billion valuation after successfully raising #3.4 billion from investors. However, now it has entered a restructuring agreement with reduced debt.
With the world falling inwards once the COVID-19 pandemic kicked off, Thrasio gained the appropriate platform to open its profitable chapter. As an aggregator, it acquired businesses on Amazon with growth potential and helped consolidate their positions within the third-party seller ecosystem.
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Thrasio bankruptcy declared
The startup has come to an agreement with lenders to cut off about $495 million of its debt. On the other hand, in its ‘plan of reorganisation’, Thrasio has joined forces with creditors willing to offer it up to $90 million in fresh capital. This will, in turn, be invested in its ongoing operations to facilitate the workings of brands already listed in its portfolio.
An extract from Thrasio CEO Greg Greeley's statement highlighted: “Thrasio is one of the largest third-party sellers on the Amazon marketplace, and with a strengthened balance sheet and new capital, we will get better equipped to support our brands, scale our infrastructure and enable future opportunities” (CNBC).
With the pandemic's reign losing grip, the hype around Thrasio's works also started slipping out. As e-commerce growth took a step back, Thrasio had no choice but to lay off about 20% of its employees in 2022. Several executives, including co-founder Josh Silberstein, also parted ways with the company.
