Men’s online retailer JackThreads is looking for a buyer. The brand, which had been part of the digital media company Thrillist, is in talks to sell after its recent reincarnation failed.
Recode reported the ecommerce site started as a flash-sale model, selling men’s streetwear at discounted prices in limited quantities. In 2016 however, JackThreads aimed to start selling its own brand of men’s clothing at full prices.
In this attempt, it did so by offering customers a try-on-at-home model called TryOuts. This allowed them to order as many products as they wanted, paying for what they wanted to keep and sending the rest back with no shipping fees either way.
This new model launched in the spring of 2016, but by the fall JackThreads was already in talks with investors to raise more money.
At the time, the company was very unprofitable and projecting only around $30 million in revenue for the year, sources told Recode. At one point in previous years, JackThreads did as much as $70 million in revenue or more.
Recode reported that a spokesperson confirmed the sale talks; there have been accompanying layoffs, according to Fortune. In recent weeks JackThreads customers have been complaining of orders being canceled and extra-long delivery times.
JackThreads was founded in 2008 in Columbus, OH by entrepreneur Jason Ross and was acquired by Ben Lerer’s Thrillist in 2010. In 2015, the two companies split apart and raised a combined $54 million to fund separate entities.