THE WHAT? Direct-to-consumer brand Bluebell has announced a US$20 million investment that will be used for new category and retail expansion. 

THE DETAILS Bluebell was launched in 2019 and offers a tablet-based refill system to help eliminate single-use plastic.

The new round of financing was led by female-founded Prelude Growth Partners, a New York-based growth equity firm focused on consumer brands, and was funded by 95 percent female investors. 

To date, the company has raised US$35 million from top industry leaders and celebrities including Justin Timberlake, Adrian Grenier, Jennifer Fleiss (Rent the Runway), Nicolas Jammet (Sweetgreen), and Nick Green (Thrive Market).

THE WHY? The latest round will accelerate Blueland’s direct-to-consumer and retail growth, fueling its continued expansion in the cleaning category and new entrance into personal care with ‘proprietary, high-performance and sustainable alternatives to everyday products in industries dominated by plastic packaging and harsh chemicals.’

Following the financial injection, Blueland aims to strengthen its investment in innovation and R&D and retail expansion. 

Plans to expand into new cleaning and personal care category launches are already in place, with new offerings scheduled to debut in 2022.

Sarah Paiji Yoo, co-founder and CEO of Blueland, says, “”When we started Blueland, we set out to change both consumer behavior and industry practices around plastic consumption and production.

“We’ve seen tremendous positive reception as the first and leading brand to use no single-use plastic across all our cleaning products, and we are excited to expand into additional categories and channels and reach more consumers to maximize our impact on the planet.”