New milestone in Tropicfeel's expansion plan, the Barcelona-based brand of sneakers, backpacks, and clothing for travel lovers founded by Alberto Espinós. The digital native startup has just opened its second physical store in L'illa Diagonal, which joins the one it opened in November 2022 on Portaferrisa street, both in Barcelona. Initially, it was an ephemeral establishment, but its good reception by the public made it permanent.
Now, Tropicfeel has redoubled its commitment to the retail channel by establishing itself inside a benchmark shopping center in the city and frequented by a public with high purchasing power. The opening has led to the creation of four jobs and increased the number of employees of the company, which was founded in 2017, to 50. According to the brand, L'illa will mainly sell its star products, focusing on sneakers, backpacks, and carry-on luggage with their accessories.
“We are very excited to finally announce the opening of our second physical store in Barcelona, located in L'Illa Diagonal, which marks a significant step in our growth, expansion, and commitment. Since the success of our first store in 2022, we have felt strong support and are delighted to be able to take another step forward. This new location not only gives us more space for our new collections but also offers a place where we can truly connect with all travelers around the world,” explains the firm's founder, Alberto Espinós.
The entrepreneur's goal is to accelerate his plan for opening physical stores from now on, with the challenge of opening ten new locations in two years. Two new openings could take place in 2024 and the rest in 2025. There will be new stores in the Catalan capital, but Tropicfeel also wants to establish itself in Madrid and is analyzing the opening of some establishment abroad.
This growth plan comes after the brand closed a financing round in March 2023 that allowed it to raise 5 million euros. In addition, after increasing its turnover by 23% last year, Tropicfeel has abandoned losses and entered profitability for the first time, according to Expansión. Specifically, last year the company invoiced 27 million euros, five million more than the 22 million recorded in the previous year, when it had grown by 80%.
The US market is one of the firm's growth engines and already generates 20% of its turnover. Other prominent countries are Germany, the United Kingdom, and Spain. In total, thanks to its online store, the startup has customers in 65 countries. Its sneakers generate 47% of the revenue and backpacks another 43%.
The Series A financing round announced a year ago for an amount of 5 million euros was led by Fondo Bolsa Social and by other shareholders who had previously invested in the company, such as Ona Capital.