As a global company, we don’t want to limit ourselves to just one office or location. Read on to hear about our move to a digital HQ.Otrium was dreamt up as a digital-first company and we’ll always be that way. That’s why we’ve launched our HQ in the cloud.. It gives our employees, the O-team, the freedom and flexibility to carry out their work however suits them best. It also reaffirms our global, inclusive mindset.Beliefs We hold four important beliefs that were the foundations of creating a HQ in the cloud. Firstly, we have a high-performance culture – we trust our teams to always deliver the best work. We understand that output is more important than the hours put in or the location the work was carried out in.Secondly, we already do everything in the cloud – our meetings, documents, daily communications (next to our communication in real life or in our hubs). It’s all online so it makes sense to cement this with an HQ in the cloud.Thirdly, we see all our hubs around the globe as equally important. All Otrium employees should receive the same employee experience. Last but not least, we see our hubs as social places where we can collaborate, concentrate and create. And we don’t want this process to stop just because our teams are in different cities or timezones. And everyone gets to choose the work model that’s best for them – and can change their work model twice a year to reflect their lives and changing circumstances as required.Working models The Otrium work models include: remote first, hub first and a hybrid version of the two (50/50). With remote first, employees are 90% remote and will mostly work from another location other than our hub (so not necessarily working from home). With hub first, you’ll work from a hub for 80% of your time. We ask our O-team to keep working remotely for 20% of their time, to stimulate our digital way of working, productivity and to decrease commuting. The third model is our hybrid model, meaning you work 50% remote and 50% in one of our hubs.Freedom and flexibility Finally, along with our HQ in the cloud, Otrium gives our team the freedom and flexibility to work remotely for eight calendar weeks per calendar year from another country than where registered on the employee’s contract. This could include working from another Otrium hub or location of choice.When dealing with different time zones, we make sure we document as much as possible. We use Notion as our source for company-wide info, our employee handbook, team pages and for all meeting notes, slides and recordings. Whether it’s 8am in Amsterdam or midnight in Auckland, all our information will always be there – in the cloud.Milan adds: “The future of work is flexibility. We’re building a truly global and diverse team. To do that we’ve created a model that adapts to people’s lives, instead of a one-size-fits-all model, which doesn’t reflect the way people want to work now. We’re giving our people the choice – in when, how and where they work. With our HQ in the cloud, we’ve developed a truly flexible working model that works for everyone, wherever they are in the world and whatever their personal circumstances. Our HQ in the cloud is the future of flexible working.”

In 2013, Netherlands-natives and recent grads Milan Daniels and Max Klijnstra launched a somewhat successful sweater brand in Amsterdam. The two were selling thousands of sweaters in over 20 countries, and doing 4-6 collections per year. What they eventually noticed, however, was that their warehouse was filled with a vast amount of items from previous collections, even after they’d already done their sale.Daniels and Klijnstra decided to look into solutions for these end-of-season clothes, so they talked to stock buyers, e-commerce sites that offered flash sales, physical outlet centers, and large outlet malls.They eventually  learned that every brand had the problem of unsold inventory, that stock buyers and flash sales took very high margins, and that it was difficult for many brands to break the barrier to market entry at physical outlets.  So, in 2015 they launched undefined, an online marketplace for end-of-season clothes that allows brands to sell their unsold inventory at cheaper prices.In late May of 2020, Otrium announced that it had raised €24 million in Series B funding, in a round led by Eight Roads Ventures, with existing investors Index Ventures and Hans Veldhuizen participating.“We are trying to change the perception that clothing that is usually 3 months or 6 months at full price and after it’s seen as worthless” Milan Daniels, cofounder and co-CEO says. “We wanted to build a platform where these items get a chance at being bought at a price that is cheaper but still values all the resources that went to the product.” 

Otrium, the premier online outlet shopping experience, has appointed Andrew Robb, formerly Chief Operating Officer at Farfetch, to its board in the role of Non-Executive Director. Having scaled Farfetch during his 10 years as COO, Robb will bring his expertise to bear in scaling Otrium into a global ecommerce leader.Otrium is a fashion marketplace that solves the enormous multi-billion dollar industry challenge of unsold inventory. Currently, around 12% of clothing produced stays unsold. Using proprietary technology, Otrium works with fashion brands to help find a buyer for every item of clothing produced. It offers brands an easy way to set up an online outlet store, leveraging its in-depth analytics to ensure brands maximize their revenues and ensuring customers get the best fashion brands at exceptional prices, all with premium service.Otrium partners with leading fashion brands, including Karl Lagerfeld, Joseph, Anine Bing, Belstaff and Reiss. In 2020, Otrium saw revenues triple, with registered members surpassing 3 million and over 300 fashion stores now on its app. It serves over 20 markets across Europe and the US from 3 logistics hubs. Says co-founder and CEO, Milan Daniels, “We’ve strengthened our board team with Andrew Robb, who brings a huge amount of passion and experience in rapidly-scaling technology-led businesses, from early stage through to hyper-growth.”Says Robb, “I’m interested in businesses that can change the world. Having helped scale Farfetch from an early stage through to becoming a global leader in luxury fashion ecommerce, I can see the global potential in Otrium. I’m excited to be joining the board to see it through this scaling phase of its journey – there’s no better time to be a part of what Otrium is bringing to the fashion world.”