About World Global Style Network
World Global Style Network is a Retail company based in London (United Kingdom) founded in 1998, and was acquired by Apax in February 2024. AI powered trend forecasting and analytics for the fashion and lifestyle industry. World Global Style Network has raised $35 million across 2 funding rounds from investors including Apax Partners, Nomura and emap. The company has 194 employees. World Global Style Network has completed 2 acquisitions, including Stylesight and The IWSR. Its website wgsn.com draws about 416 thousand monthly visits. Its focus areas include Consumer, Fashion Tech, Technology Enablers and Analytics. Its legal entity is WGSN LIMITED.
Company details
Founded in 1998 and based in London, United Kingdom, the company operates in the fashion and lifestyle industry. Tools for market trend identification, product performance tracking across brands and retailers, consumer and product insights, crowdsourced buying, and design validation are offered. Solutions support go-to-market strategies and product launches, serving creative trend experts, designers, editors, account managers, marketers, product developers, and customer service professionals.
- Headquarters London, United Kingdom
- Employees 194
- Stage Acquired
- SectorsRetail
- Website category Lifestyle · Fashion and Apparel
- Email••••••••
- Website wgsn.com/en
- Social LinkedIn X Facebook
- Acquired by emap (Jun 2015)
- Legal Name Wgsn Limited
- Date of Incorporation 06 Aug, 2003
- Jurisdiction LONDON, ENGLAND
- Annual Revenue$45.72 M (USD)-3as on Dec 31, 2017
- Net Profit$11.3 M (USD)111as on Dec 31, 2017
- Total Equity Funding$35M (USD)
in 2 rounds
- Latest Funding Round$20M (USD), Series B
May 2000
- InvestorsApax Partners
& 2 more
- Employee Count194
- Investments & AcquisitionsStylesight
& 1 more
- Acquired by
Funding Insights of World Global Style Network
World Global Style Network has successfully raised a total of $35M across 2 strategic funding rounds. The most recent funding activity was a Series B round of $20 million completed in May 2000. This substantial capital infusion reflects strong investor confidence in the company's business model, growth potential, and market opportunities. The funding enables strategic expansion, product development, market penetration, and operational scaling to drive long-term value creation and competitive advantage.
- Total Funding $35M
- Total Rounds 2
- Last Round Series B — $20M
- First Round $15M
(Jul 1999)
- Investors Count 1
All 2 funding rounds of World Global Style Network with amounts and investors; the two latest post-money valuations are shown, the rest are part of the premium plan.
3 investors in total: 3 institutional.
Investors in World Global Style Network
World Global Style Network has secured backing from 3 investors, including institutional and venture fund investors. Prominent investors backing the company include Apax Partners, Nomura and emap.
| Investor | Description | Founded Year | Domain | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Equity investments are focused on tech, services, and consumer sectors. | 1981 | apax.com | Hong Kong, China | |
Diversified asset management services are offered globally by the firm. | 1925 | nomura.com | Chuo City, Japan | |
Provides niche media content, events, and digital solutions for specialized industries. | 1887 | emap.com | Croydon, United Kingdom |
Investor details for World Global Style Network
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People of World Global Style Network
649 people are tracked at World Global Style Network (271 in leadership, 8 in board & advisors, 370 in team); the tracked headcount is 194.
| Name | Role | Group |
|---|---|---|
John Keith Gulliver | Executive Director | Leadership |
Duncan Anthony Painter | Executive Director | Leadership |
Megan O'Shaughnessy | Head Of Benefits And Pension Operations | Leadership |
Gareth Wright | Group Finance Director | Leadership |
James Turner | Global Head Of Portfolio Management - Colleague Technology | Leadership |
Allen Tatara | Associate Director, Omdia Webinars | Informa Engage | Leadership |
Stephen A. Carter | Group Chief Executive | Leadership |
Kelly Schram | Head Of Strategy & Innovation, IMI Division | Leadership |
Yazeed Jaber | Talent Network Partner | Leadership |
Patrick Martell | COO & Chief Executive, Informa Markets | Leadership |
Ruth Ovens | Chief People Officer | Leadership |
Jason Gramp | Design Director | Leadership |
Adela Knox | Brand Strategy Director & Editor In Chief | Leadership |
Amit Khade | Director Of Customer Insights | Leadership |
Sandeep Potnis | Head Of Business Intelligence And Analytics (iiris) | Leadership |
Manal Elias | Creative Director, Global Campaigns | Leadership |
Tracey Tipler | Head Of Finance Process And Solution Architecture | Leadership |
Dariel B. | Head Of Finance Solutions Architecture & Innovation | Leadership |
Claudia Maestrini | Corporate Development Director | Leadership |
Alyssa Amatulli | Vice President Of Marketing - Informa Connect North America | Leadership |
629 more people are available in the full profile.
Complete people profiles for World Global Style Network
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Investments & Acquisitions by World Global Style Network
World Global Style Network has strategically engaged in corporate development activities, having acquired 2 companies. Notable acquisitions include Stylesight and The IWSR.
| Company Name | Description | Domain | Location | Founded | Acquired | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Data and insights on alcoholic beverage markets are provided. | theiwsr.com | London, United Kingdom | 1971 | Jun 2025 | •••• | |
Trend forecasting tools are offered to fashion industry professionals. | stylesight.com | New York, United States | 2003 | Nov 2013 | •••• |
Complete acquisition details for World Global Style Network
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Timeline of World Global Style Network
7 dated milestones of World Global Style Network across 27 years, from founding to its latest funding, stage changes and deals.
- Founded World Global Style Network is founded.
- Funding First funding round of $15.0M.
- Funding Latest funding round, Series B, of $20.0M.
- Acquisition Acquires Stylesight.
- Exit Acquired by emap.
- Exit Acquired by Apax.
- Acquisition Acquires The IWSR.
Web traffic of World Global Style Network
The website of World Global Style Network (wgsn.com) receives about 415.7K visits a month and ranks #76,220 among all websites worldwide, #3,790 in Fashion and Apparel.
- Monthly visits415.7K
▲ 10.2% vs previous month
- Unique visitors149.8K
per month
- Global rank#76,220
among all websites
- Category rank#3,790
Lifestyle · Fashion and Apparel
- Bounce rate40%
- Pages per visit8.9
- Average visit3 min 40 sec
- DevicesDesktop 57% · Mobile 43%
Websites whose visitors overlap most with World Global Style Network. Affinity shows how closely the audiences match.
| Website | Domain | Audience affinity | Monthly visits | Global rank | Profile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style.com | 100% | View details | |||
drapersonline.com | drapersonline.com | 99% | #292,925 | – | |
| trendstop.com | 86% | 8.6K | #2,579,061 | View details | |
wgsn.tumblr.com | wgsn.tumblr.com | 86% | – | ||
fashiontrendsetter.com | fashiontrendsetter.com | 85% | #1,018,877 | – | |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
| •••••••••• | ••••••.com | ••% | •.•M | #••••• | – |
All 40 similar websites and full traffic analytics for World Global Style Network
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Frequently Asked Questions about World Global Style Network
World Global Style Network was founded in 1998 and raised its 1st funding round 1 year after it was founded.
World Global Style Network is headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is registered at London, England, United Kingdom.
World Global Style Network is a funded company, having raised a total of $35M across 2 funding rounds to date. The company's 1st funding round was a Series A of $15M, raised on Jul 1999.
World Global Style Network has 194 employees.
Annual revenue of World Global Style Network is $45.72M as on Dec 31, 2017.
Founded in 1998 and based in London, United Kingdom, the company operates in the fashion and lifestyle industry. Tools for market trend identification, product performance tracking across brands and retailers, consumer and product insights, crowdsourced buying, and design validation are offered. Solutions support go-to-market strategies and product launches, serving creative trend experts, designers, editors, account managers, marketers, product developers, and customer service professionals.
World Global Style Network has made 2 acquisitions, including Stylesight, and The IWSR.
World Global Style Network has 3 investors. Key investors include Apax Partners, Nomura, and emap.
World Global Style Network operates through Wgsn Limited.
Yes. World Global Style Network was acquired by emap in June 2015.
The website of World Global Style Network receives about 416 thousand visits a month and ranks #76,220 among all websites worldwide.