Thirteen Lune raises $8M in seed round

Dive Brief:

Amid its brick-and-mortar push, beauty e-commerce company Thirteen Lune has raised $8 million in seed funding with new participation from The BrainTrust Fund.
The company will use the funds to expand its brick-and-mortar presence, support its omnichannel strategy, implement its experiential retail plans and expand its private label brand, Relevant: Your Skin Seen. The company said with the investment, it is on track to reach profitability this year, according to the announcement.
With the $8 million seed round, the company has now raised $12.5 million total, per the press release.

Dive Insight:

Thirteen Lune attributed its more than 2,000% year-over-year sales growth in 2022 to the launch of its first private label, the expansion of its in-store partnership with J.C. Penney Beauty and the addition of BIPOC-founded brands like Ami Colé, Buttah Skin and Pattern Beauty by Tracee Ellis Ross.

So far, the platform has attracted noteworthy investors, including Sean (Diddy) Combs, Gwyneth Paltrow, Hannah Bronfman and Naomi Watts. The company launched in 2020 selling 13 brands on its platform. But now the platform boasts more than 160 beauty brands, most of which are founded by entrepreneurs of color and the other 10% by “ally brands.”

“As a 20-plus year Black beauty entrepreneur, it’s an honor to shape the landscape of inclusive beauty, acting as an agent of change for BIPOC brand founders to receive recognition and opportunity,” Thirteen Lune co-founder Nyakio Grieco said in a statement. “Our partners share Thirteen Lune’s mission to support diverse founders who have historically had fewer resources and opportunities to build a business and create generational wealth.”

Thirteen Lune also appears to be building on its partnership with J.C. Penney. In 2021, J.C. Penney tapped Thirteen Lune to bring various products into select J.C. Penney Beauty locations. Last September, the two announced plans to expand beyond the initial 10 stores into 300 stores in early 2023 and 600 stores by this spring.

Aside from the partnership with J.C. Penney, the company is also expanding its own brick-and-mortar presence. In December, the company said it would open its debut retail store in Los Angeles in early 2023.