159: Your Purpose is the Story. Gemma Comabella, COCOLI

Why is there no Vestiaire Collective for furniture? Why isn’t
there a platform that gives designer furniture the second life it
deserves?


This was the question Gemma Comabella posed herself while she was
Managing Director DACH for MADE.com. And she hit a
nerve.


Pre-loved furniture is more than just a gap in the market. It is
also a solution to reduce the environmental impact of our love
for all things interior, which produces million of tonnes of
waste every year. Gemma Comabella decided to do her part and
founded COCOLI, together with a dream team of five co-founders to
tackle a tough problem no one has solved before. Together they
have created a platform that reinvents the way we find, buy and
reuse furniture. Launched this January, COCOLI already has 4
warehouses in Germany, lots of media interest and 40%
month-on-month growth.


"It’s not about what you sell,“ says Gemma. "What is your
purpose?“ She found hers after a career building global fashion
and consumer brands like Zalando, L’Oréal, Vestiaire Collective
and Showroom, and then joining the furniture platform
Made.com as Managing Director for the DACH region in
2019.


This episode is packed with insights including:


How to convince 5 co-founders to form an all star team


Why purpose creates PR


What works in fundraising in the current environment


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