LearnAI - The Trend that was Farfetch: A High Fashion, High-Risk Platform Strategy

This case examines the rise and fall of Farfetch, a pioneering luxury e-commerce platform that once reached a $24 billion valuation before a dramatic collapse. Learners engage directly with multiple stakeholders—including investors, influencers, B2B partners, and B2C/B2CX customers—to uncover the structural misalignments that ultimately undermined the platform’s success. Pedagogically, the case departs from traditional retrospective analysis: rather than diagnosing failure after the fact, participants experience how misalignment unfolds through B2B and B2C stakeholder interaction, and reflect on how alternative governance models, experience design, data monetization, relationship-building strategies, or strategic positioning interfaces might have altered Farfetch’s trajectory.

1. Analyze the strengths and vulnerabilities of platform business models.
2. Evaluate growth-versus-profitability trade-offs in scaling ventures.
3. Assess how supplier power reshapes platform strategy and value capture.
4. Diagnose governance and capital allocation failures in high-growth firms.
5. Design strategic responses to digital disruption and market shifts.