China VC-backed parenting site gets Series D from Suning
Lamabang, a Chinese parent-focused social platform backed by several VC investors, has raised a Series D round of funding from local home appliance retailer Suning Commerce.
Financial terms were not disclosed. Lamanbang is seeking strategic partnerships after turning profitable last year, according to a statement. Suning's resources will help accelerate the development of sales channels and partnerships.
Operated under Shenzhen Wangzhi Technology, Lamabang was launched in May 2012. It started as an online platform through which mothers could share parenting, fashion and shopping tips. Its coverage then broadened to target women at four stages of parenthood: pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, childbirth and parenting. The company now also runs an e-commerce channel that sells products and clothing for both mothers and infants.
According to AVCJ Research, Lamabang raised a $10 million Series A round from Matrix Partners China, China Renaissance K2 Ventures and Morningside Ventures in 2013. This was followed by a $20 million Series B led by Greenwoods Asset Management in 2014 and then a $100 million Series C led by online retailer Vipshop. Existing investors Matrix Partners, Greenwoods and Morningside all participated.
In addition to Lamabang, Wangzhi Technology operates a healthcare management app, known as Yunqi Banlv. It has partnerships with about 3,000 hospitals and clinics, and doctors assess data uploaded by mothers - on their children and themselves - in order to make healthcare recommendations.
As part of the transaction, Suning's maternity and baby products B2C e-commerce platform Redbaby will work with Lamabang to integrate their respective business platforms, including users, online sales channels and advertising operations.
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