Chinese online-offline retailer KK Group achieves unicorn status

The round takes the company's valuation over the $1 billion threshold. KK received RMB400 million ($57 million) from Matrix, Black Algae and Shenzhen Venture Capital in March. That round was also led by the Electronic World Trade Platform (eWTP) Ecosystem Fund, launched last year with a $600 million anchor commitment from Alibaba and Ant Financial and a remit to drive innovation and international expansion.

KK's rebranding follows the introduction of two new retail lines, KKV and Colorist. Including the established KK Guan brand, the group now operates hundreds of offline shops in more than 70 cities.

Founded in 2014, KK Guan operates an online marketplace and over 100 offline stores that sell goods ranging from snacks to baby care products. It claims new stores break-even within 14 months. KKV and Colorist both target female consumers aged 14-35 with average spending per customer of RMB100-200. They primarily sell make-up.

Yuening Wu, KK's founder and CEO, said in a written reply to 36Kr that the company has online and offline shops in order to bring offline customers to the online platform. All make-up products can be tried in-store. Some outlets feature full wall displays of lipsticks and facial masks that have become popular backdrops for visitors taking photos.

To offer the best shopping experience, Wu has implemented a policy of “no membership, no events, and no service.” The latter means clerks are discouraged from greeting customers or promoting products; they only appear when assistance is required.

Shenzhen Venture Capital provided RMB15 million in seed funding in 2016 and a RMB100 million Series A in 2017. A year later, Matrix led a RMB70 million Series B.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• Consumer
• Expansion
• Technology
• China
• e-commerce
• Matrix Partners
• Alibaba Group
• Growth capital
• TMT