ModCloth, an online store for women’s fashion known for their vintage vibe and inclusive sizing, will soon be acquired by Jet.com, a subsidiary of Walmart.
According to Jezebel, ModCloth employees were told of the future purchase on Wednesday morning during an all-hands meeting with CEO Matthew Kaness. The purchase is to be finalized on Thursday, and the deal will be publicly announced on Friday.
“This is news that hasn’t been shared with the public yet,” Kaness said, according to a recording of the meeting provided to Jezebel. “I ask that we keep this within the company, as we usually do.”
ModCloth customers have already begun expressing their distaste for the website’s ownership by Walmart, a corporation known for using foreign child labor, underpaying their employees, and getting sued for gender discrimination. ModCloth, on the other hand, is lauded for its feminist brand and clothes that bleed quirk and originality.
According to Jezebel, the women’s retailer has been struggling for years, with one current employee referring to “reapings,” six rounds of layoffs that ModCloth has gone through over the past two and a half years.
Customers are already taking issue with Walmart’s future role in the company and mourning the sale on Twitter.
Area Woman Currently Wearing a Modcloth Sale Dress (As She Has Most Days for the Past Decade) Feeling Betrayed, Furious, Vengeful
— Elizabeth Minkel (@elizabethminkel) March 15, 2017
@ModCloth I'm so disappointed in you for selling to @Walmart – a horribly unethical company which I will never patronize.
— Liora #FreePalestine (@LeiasLegacy84) March 15, 2017
Losing @ModCloth to @Walmart is like that one really sensitive, quirky boyfriend who you thought was the one leaving you for Ivanka.
— Anne of No Gables (@anneofnogables) March 15, 2017
https://twitter.com/gifcompatible/status/842064481979142145
https://twitter.com/Jessi_said_what/status/842059613616902144
https://twitter.com/denamlandon/status/842053827205464064
https://twitter.com/YAdultescent/status/842064321131757568
Some people have started sharing resources of alternative retailers online.
https://twitter.com/ArielTroster/status/842072729545256966
https://twitter.com/runwithskizzers/status/842072086843691008
During the ModCloth meeting, Kaness appeared to angle the news as exciting, comparing Modcloth and Walmart’s cultural similarities.
“When I think about [Jet’s] parent company Walmart, who has the resources—but also has when you’ve spent time researching it and understanding it, they’ve spent a lot of time working on corporate responsibility and environmental initiatives and opportunities for their employees and their careers,” Kaness said. “I think there’s a lot of overlap culturally with what they’re about and what we’re about. I think over time this is going to become an incredible marriage.”
According to Jezebel, employees in the room can be heard laughing in disbelief.
ModCloth and Walmart did not immediately return requests for comment.
H/T Jezebel