Quip brushes up $40M following Target launch

Dive Brief:

Following its October debut at Target, oral healthcare direct-to-consumer brand quip announced Monday that it has raised $40 million through equity financing from existing investor Sherpa Capital and debt financing from TriplePoint Capital. The funding will support upcoming product and service launches, according to a company press release.
The round of series A1 funding brings its total amount raised to $60.85 million, which puts the company's pre-money valuation at $150 million, according to data provided to Retail Dive by Pitchbook.
Quip launched in New York in 2015, but this year picked up steam with the acquisition of dental care membership plan Afora and a launch into brick-and-mortar thanks to a partnership with Target.

Dive Insight:

Quip, which sells a subscription service for electronic toothbrushes among other things, is one of many buzzy digitally native brands to catch the eye of big-box retailers looking for fresh design and a healthy following of millennial consumers. It's no wonder Target introduced the brand, along with aluminum and paraben-free deodorant brand Native, in stores this fall.

Over the last year and a half, Target has gone from turnaround story to retail heavy weight, thanks in part to moves like this. "Cheap chic" merchandising has always been a central page in Target's playbook, and that includes private labels, celebrity partnerships and trendy national brands alike.

Target's first major foray into the digitally native personal care subscription space kicked off with its 2016 partnership with men's grooming brand Harry's. Then in 2017, the company brought Casper mattresses and bedding items into stores, and this spring it launched eight new digital first beauty brands. The move to bring quip into the fold falls in line, considering the company's quick customer acquisition.

Brian Yee, a partner at Sherpa Capital, said in a statement that he was impressed by how quickly the team reached over 1 million consumers as well as the design mindset spurred by the company's CEO and co-founder Simon Enever.

The company is also demonstrating that its ambitions go further than toothbrush bristles. By offering oral health advice and support as well as incentives for dental check-ups, it seems quip is moving toward becoming a lifestyle brand. That pivot away from one core product into a service has also been successful for other digitally native brands like luggage company Away.