China-US consumer brand accelerator raises $58m

Participants in the round included London-based Manzanita Capital, Spanish fashion and fragrance company Puig, New York-based Demira Gate Investments, US hybrid credit and equity provider Upper90, and Julian Reis, founder and CEO of SuperOrdinary.

The company received a Series A from Allianz Consumer Growth and Singapore-based private equity firm CMIA Capital Partners in 2019. At the time, SuperOrdinary was building consumer brands targeting Chinese millennials and helping global beauty brands grow in China. CMIA said it exited in January 2023 when "a US-based consumer funds and a Europe-based consumer brand group" came in as investors.

SuperOrdinary describes itself as a growth partner for consumer brands such as Farmacy, Olaplex, Sabon, NuFace, and Biossance. It helps brands establish influence, scale global sales channels, and connect with creators and consumers.

Key assets include Galagala, a multi-brand e-commerce platform with more than 50m content creators posting to leading social media platforms, an in-house digital talent management agency that represents content creators, and a 650-strong acceleration team across Asia and the US with expertise in e-commerce platforms like Amazon, Tmall, Shopee, and Lazada.

The company claims 30% annual revenue growth driven by expansion in the US, continued investment in marketing and branding capabilities in Asia, and the buildout of its engineering team, which tripled in size over the past 12 months. It is also growing its creator economy business, which has grown 12x since the acquisition of subscription content monetisation start-up Fanfix last year.

The Series B proceeds will be used to invest in global live streaming capabilities, Amazon account management and brand protection services, and the creator monetisation platform.

SuperOrdinary expects to grow by more than 40% next year, reaching USD 350m in revenue. It also expects to achieve profitability.

"Despite the current market challenges in the US and China, we have continued to prove our value to brands across the globe, helping them scale via international expansion, creator partnerships, and Amazon growth, and we are excited to continue accelerating brands across a multitude of channels as a result of this new funding," Reis said in a statement.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• North America
• Early-stage
• Technology
• Consumer
• China
• USA
• e-commerce
• TMT