Ulla Johnson Adds Affirm’s BNPL Solution

Fans of upscale womenswear have a new way to pay, according to a press release.

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) platform Affirm has partnered with Ulla Johnson, which specializes in “free-spirited” clothing and accessories for women, the release stated. The deal will allow eligible customers to split the cost of any purchase over $50 into biweekly or monthly payments with no hidden fees.

Consumers must buy online at the Ulla Johnson website. Ulla Johnson markets high-end women’s clothing that many celebrities wear, according to the release. Affirm has similar arrangements with close to 8,000 retail partners, including Neiman Marcus, Oscar de la Renta and Nordstrom.

In related news, digital financing provider Snap Finance teamed with Affirm this week, PYMNTS reported. Merchants that use Snap now have the ability to integrate Affirm’s additional financing options without affecting their credit score. Underwriting decisions are “made in seconds at checkout.”

In February, Affirm held its first earnings call since going public and presented solid metrics for 2020 and added a case for its continued growth in 2021. Some questioned that growth at the time as the company expected third-quarter gross merchandising volume (GMV) to decline to between $1.8 billion and $1.85 billion, compared to $2.1 billion reported for the previous quarter. That revision sent shares dropping 8.7 percent in after-hours trading.

CEO Max Levchin said at the time that he saw the results as a prelude to continued expansion, perhaps even into everyday purchases in 2021.

“We believe we can address not only the $600 billion of eCommerce spent in the U.S., but the $7.6 trillion of card spend processed online and offline at merchants in the United States,” Levchin said. “We have successfully demonstrated how our solutions can enable and accelerate commerce for larger, more considered purchases. A key principle of our next phase of growth is to expand into higher frequency purchases by investing in our split pay product, ramping up our partnership with Shopify and making strategic investments in marketing.”