Nearly $20 million funding round puts vintage fashionistas ModCloth in expansion, hiring mode

Eric Koger is on a hot streak recently. In June, Ernst & Young named Koger–the co-founder and CEO of Pittsburgh’s online vintage clothing retailer ModCloth–one of their Entrepreneurs of the Year. This week, the company announced that, as the latest Series B venture capital financing round closed, they would receive $19.8 million toward their planned expansion. And you thought you were having a great summer.

Koger and wife Susan started ModCloth out of a freshman dorm room at Carnegie Mellon University, selling thrift-store finds at bargain prices. After four years of college and a few years out in the real world, ModCloth has become one of Pennsylvania’s most successful ebusinesses. And this round of financing, which included funding from StubHub co-founder Jeff Fluhr and Facebook financiers Accel Partners, proves that ModCloth has truly hit the big time.

"Our philosophy around the business has not changed," says Koger on his company’s recent success. "We have always had opportunities in front of us, but now we have the resources to explore some of those opportunities."

One of those opportunities is creating a West Coast presence. Believing that ModCloth’s seemingly endless collection of oh-so-cute print dresses would look great in the California sun, Koger visited there this week, checking out the operations at new ModCloth offices in San Francisco and Los Angeles. With two new leases on the books, Koger says his company’s new financing will come in handy as business moves west.

"People are more expensive in California," says Koger. "The tax on payroll and cost of living are just so much higher. Check out our careers page though, we are hiring multiple roles in Pittsburgh as well. We have lots of opportunities these days."

Source: Eric Koger, Modcloth
Writer: John Steele