Eco-friendly personal care challenger Fussy has raised more than £1m from the crowd as it seeks to eliminate single-use plastic in the category.
The sustainable deodorant brand, which also secured a joint £50k investment from Deborah Meaden and Peter Jones on BBC’s Dragons’ Den earlier this year, will use the money raised in the Seedrs campaign to scale distribution and fuel NPD.
Fussy hit its £700k crowdfunding target within an hour of the pitch going live and has so far raised £1.1m from 1,225 investors, valuing it at £6.2m – an increase from the £2.5m valuation achieved from its Dragons’ Den raise when it gave the two dragons a joint 2% stake for £50k.
The business, formed in 2020 by Matt Kennedy and Eddie Fisher, makes a range of plastic-free, compostable deodorant refills that are natural, free from aluminium, parabens and 100% vegan.
It sends the refils, which combine with a durable case, to customers through a flexible subscription model on its DTC site.
In just more than a year, Fussy has generated sales of £2m from 97,000 customers and 29,000 subscribers, saving more than 100 tonnes of single-use plastic.
It has also launched into the retail space with fashion outlet Urban Outfitters and is also available with Amazon, with a plan for further omnichannel expansion.
International expansion will focus on the EU in 2023, with the US and Australia to follow.
CEO Matt Kennedy said: “Brands have the responsibility, consumers have the power.
“It’s only together that we can create real change. And for us, crowdfunding is the perfect demonstration of this.
“It’s been amazing to see the reaction and it is testament to the strong community and product we’ve build here at Fussy.”
Earlier this year, rival sustainable personal care brand Wild Cosmetics raised £5m to expand the business and move into new categories.
17/10/2022 - Percentage of equity sold to Peter James and Deborah Meaden amended from 5% to 2% after the business agreed new terms after the Dragons’ Den show was filmed
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