Ironclad almost looked too good to be true for us. We had lower expectations because of how we struggled with the previous CLM. We put a lot of effort – half a year– into building automations for a single project, and we still weren’t getting what we wanted. So for us to see that, wow, it can actually work, it was really exciting.
Kamile ValatkaitėSenior Legal Counsel and team lead, Vinted
Executive summary
Vinted, Europe’s leading secondhand fashion marketplace (and a go-to destination for all kinds of second-hand items), faced mounting contract management challenges as the Lithuanian startup experienced rapid growth. With a small contracts team handling an expanding volume and variety of contracts across procurement, shipping, and marketing departments, the company needed a solution that could scale without adding headcount. After evaluating multiple contract lifecycle management (CLM) platforms through a comprehensive RFP process, Vinted selected Ironclad to replace their previous system. The implementation, completed in five months through a strategic partnership with Elevate, leveraging their CLM expertise, now serves 120 users across 12 workflows and has dramatically improved user experience and process efficiency.
The challenge: Scaling legal operations without scaling headcount
Two lawyers overseeing Vinted’s contracting process— Vytautas Klimas, Legal Counsel, and Kamile Valatkaitė, Senior Legal Counsel and team lead — had managed the company’s contract needs for several years despite significant business growth. The pressure to “stay lean as a legal team” meant they needed to “make do with the same amount of human resources” while handling increasing contract volumes and entirely new contract categories.
“Four years ago we didn’t have any system. No CLM at all,” Kamilė explained. “Contracts used to come through Slack messages and used to just float.”
The company eventually implemented another tool, which provided initial structure, but as Vinted matured, the system’s limitations became increasingly painful.
The biggest pain point was that we needed to administer the system too much. We were not just doing contract revision, but we were also navigating lots of manual work in the tool. It seems like it’s just a small thing, but it might have taken a day for us to solve an NDA, which is too long.
Kamile ValatkaitėSenior Legal Counsel and team lead, Vinted
The challenges extended beyond administrative burden. Vytautas identified two critical growth trajectories: “One is, of course, the volume of contracts, and the other one is expanding into brand new types and categories of contracts.” This dual pressure required “a flexible way to automate our contracts” and “set up workflows, both complicated and simple.”
The search: Finding a CLM that could deliver on promises
As Vinted started to outgrow its previous tool, the pain points intensified, prompting a comprehensive evaluation of alternatives. The team engaged external consultants to assess the status quo and give recommendations, followed by a full RFP process with multiple CLM vendors.
“We were always looking around at what’s out there. What are the different offerings?” Vytautas said. “But as you know, you may hear and see one thing in slides and demos. The experience you hear at conferences and networking groups from real users, that is something different.”
Vinted’s evaluation criteria focused heavily on user experience and configurability. Having struggled with their previous system — where certain automation projects took “half of the year” without achieving desired results — the team approached new vendors with measured expectations.
The decision: When “too good to be true” actually delivers
Ironclad’s demo proved to be a turning point in the evaluation process. The platform addressed Vinted’s specific requirements while showcasing capabilities the team hadn’t fully expected.
I remember the demo. Ironclad was showing the capabilities, and I thought, okay this is perfect. I was seeing exactly what I wanted to see.
Kamile ValatkaitėSenior Legal Counsel and team lead, Vinted
The visual UX was particularly compelling: “Everything looks simple. Everything looks very intuitive and user friendly. In addition to the formal evaluation questionnaire, we attribute scores to the personal approach – how clear, intuitive, and configurable it is.” Kamile’s reaction captured the team’s cautious optimism: “Ironclad almost looked too good to be true for us. We had lower expectations because of how we struggled with the previous CLM. We put a lot of effort – half a year– into building automations for a single project, and we still weren’t getting what we wanted. So for us to see that, wow, it can actually work, it was really exciting.”
Implementation: A structured approach with trusted partners
Vinted partnered with Elevate for the implementation, beginning the project in mid-February and going live in July 2025. The partnership proved crucial for handling complex workflow requirements across multiple departments.
Elevate was a very trusted business partner in this journey. I liked that they weren’t just focused on building the setup that we ask for, they were also advising us on what could be the best setup, according to their experience and our needs.
Vytautas Klimas Legal Counsel, Vinted
The implementation scope was substantial: 120 users across 12 workflows, with three workflows complex enough to function as “8 different workflows” each. However, through strong collaboration the implementation project was finished within budget and agreed timelines. The system now handles contracts for the entire company across multiple departments:
Procurement: Operational expenses contracts covering everything from office supplies to IT hardware and software;
Shipping business line: Both buying and selling logistics and shipping services;
Marketing: Advertising contracts and the emerging business of selling ad inventory on Vinted’s platform;
Customer support: Service agreements supporting user experience.
Integration strategy: Connecting contract management to business systems
Vinted implemented (or is in process of implementing) several key integrations to streamline data flow between systems:
Procurement System: Eliminating manual data entry between the procurement system and the CLM;
Accounting System: Connecting contract data to accounting systems;
CRM: Planned integration for sales team’s contracts;
While comprehensive metrics are still being developed, initial feedback indicates significant improvements in user experience and operational efficiency.
People just really, really love the user experience with Ironclad. How easy it is, how intuitive it is. People are very pleasantly surprised how fast their workflows are completed now.
Vytautas Klimas Legal Counsel, Vinted
The operational improvements extend to legal team productivity. “Ironclad helps me automate and save a lot of time on lower value, lower risk activities,” Vytautas explained.
The system has also enabled greater autonomy for business teams. “Legal can enable procurement to work even more independently than before. And with that time back, we can focus on strategic tasks.”
Looking ahead: AI integration and continued optimization
Vinted’s implementation represents just the beginning of their CLM journey. The company is actively exploring Ironclad’s AI capabilities, including AI Assist for text processing and playbook functionality, with plans to test Jurist, Ironclad’s AI negotiation agent.
“We are really looking forward to leveraging AI agents to integrate with our workflows and help us with third party contract review according to our guidelines,” Vytautas said.
The team views their current state as a foundation for continued improvement. “Even though we’re at this early stage, which actually took a lot of work to get here, there’s still so much that we still can do. And Ironclad is exactly what we were looking for. It’s only the beginning of the road right now,” Vytautas concluded.
