Several vendors who sold products on Zulily say they are still awaiting full payment months after the Seattle-based online retailer was acquired by Regent LP.
While the sellers who spoke with the Business Journal have not sued the online retailer, at least two vendors say they have filed complaints with the Washington Attorney General's office about Zulily.
Vendors say Zulily usually pays 60 days after vendors ship their purchase orders generated from the company's website. Zulily, which was founded in 2009 and went public in 2013, sells goods such as clothing, electronics and shoes.
Neither Zulily nor Regent have responded to multiple interview requests from the Business Journal. In August, Zulily told the Business Journal it was launching its own internal systems and processes after the Regent sale. A Zulily spokesperson said at the time those changes have "regrettably led to some delays in different parts of the business" and that "payments to vendors are being prioritized."
Melanie Forbes and Leslie Perkins are part of a 50-member Facebook group of vendors who say they are seeking payment from Zulily. Both say they have filed complaints with the attorney general's office.
In a statement to the Business Journal, a spokesperson for the attorney general said the informal complaint resolution process is meant to resolve complaints without investigations and prosecutions. The spokesperson added that although the attorney general's office may open an investigation, the office "does not comment on active investigations, including confirming whether they exist."
Forbes and her company, Fire Mountain Spices, have worked with Zulily since 2018. She said Zulily still owes her almost $15,000.
Perkins has been selling flags through her company, Flags Galore Decor and More, on Zulily for almost five years. She told the Business Journal the relationship was great for the most part, selling $10,000 of product during her first three-day sale with Zulily.
Perkins said she was owed $24,000 from Zulily and the company told her it would make up the amount by Sept. 21, and when it didn't arrive, she said Zulily promised payment by Oct. 12.
"I will spend $25,000 to get my $24,000 back. I don't like to be screwed," Perkins told the Business Journal on Oct. 18. "This is a big dog that has made a lot of money, and they sold our product at a profit, and they're not paying us."
She said when Zulily asked her to send more purchase orders, she emailed the company on Oct. 17 to say she wouldn't be sending anything until she received at least a partial payment. Perkins said Zulily paid her $12,000 late last week.
Marika Jeziorek, who sold apparel through her small business Euro Brandz on Zulily for about nine years, said she was owed roughly $10,000.
After months of waiting, Jeziorek said a Zulily rep scheduled a video chat with her. Jeziorek, who also teaches international business at Lambton College, said the rep offered her about one-third of what she was owed on the condition that she stop seeking the full payment.
"When you have these powerful corporations or these bigger enterprises ... with the upper hand, that is not fair," said Jeziorek, who added she eventually reached an agreement with Zulily but couldn't discuss it.
In 2015, Qurate, then Liberty Interactive Corp., acquired Zulily for $2.4 billion. West Chester, Pennsylvania-based Qurate, which also owns the home shopping networks QVC and HSN, recently decided to focus on its core business of video streaming commerce. It sold Zulily to Regent, a private equity firm based in Los Angeles, for an undisclosed amount in May.
Zulily has gone through multiple rounds of layoffs this year and exited the consumables business in July.
Earlier this month, Zulily CEO Terry Boyle told employees he would step down Oct. 31, according to a report by GeekWire.
The company's former Belltown headquarters, a 345,777-square-foot building, was also marketed for lease on LoopNet earlier this year.
