11.28.18
Prose, which describes itself as a technology-powered beauty company, has raised $18 million in funding. Prose sells hair care products customized to your specific hair type and needs.
The Series B financing round was led by Insight Venture Partners, with participation from the company's existing investors, Forerunner Ventures, ISAI, Lerer Hippeau Ventures, and Correlation Ventures, bringing its total funding to $25 million. Prose will invest in an in-house data science team and plans to double its current R&D team in the next twelve months.
Prose launched in January 2018 -- and says it is "completely rethinking the shopping experience," in how it makes and distributes its products. The effort seems to to be paying off -- the company has seen double-digit growth, month-over-month.
The company customizes hair care products by asking customers to answer a few questions on its online quiz. A custom formula is created based on these answers -- and packaged in a bottle decorated with a label that has your name on it.
The quiz factors in hair type, lifestyle, and hair care habits -- plus, the pollution and humidity levels where you live. The packaging looks minimalist and conveys "natural" through the use of amber-colored bottles and jars, decorated with personalized labels in a muted, fashionable range of colors that look like lavender, pumpkin, and oatmeal.
Arnaud Plas, co-founder/CEO, Prose, says, "While we embrace the latest in modern technology, our mission at Prose is deeply rooted in the history of beauty and its one-to-one approach to making products. The traditional FMCG model, based on consumer segmentation and upfront mass production is coming to an end. It generates frustration for customers and waste for the planet. What we're building is a modern beauty company for the new generation."
Prose will also utilize its new investment to develop an "automated customization infrastructure," set to launch mid-2019, in the company's newest facility in Brooklyn, New York. The new proprietary manufacturing system will have the capacity to customize up to 10,000 products per day, which will support the company's rapid growth.