P&G Acquires Billie, A Women’s Shaving Products Startup With $35M In Venture Funding

What a difference one year makes.

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Last January, Billie, a subscription service for shaving and body care products for women, announced a $25 million Series A raise led by Goldman Sachs Private Capital Investing group.

Yesterday, wellness giant Procter & Gamble (P&G) announced plans to acquire the New York-based upstart for an undisclosed amount.

Georgina Gooley and Jason Bravman founded Billie in November 2017. The company has raised a total of $35 million in venture funding over its lifetime, according to Crunchbase data. In April 2018, Austin-based Silverton Partners led Billie’s $6 million seed round, which also included participation from Serena Ventures (tennis pro Serena Williams’ investment vehicle), Lakehouse Ventures, Female Founders Fund, and Align Ventures. Billie later went on to raise another $4 million in an extension of that seed round, according to Silverton.

The acquisition comes on the heels of another big exit in the direct-to-consumer space. Last May, Edgewell Personal Care ponied up an impressive $1.4 billion for Harry’s, a subscription shaving service for men.

Details

Billie’s current product portfolio includes razors, shaving cream, body wash and body lotion. The company has made headlines for its efforts to eliminate the “pink tax” on goods marketed to women.

In a statement, P&G said the deal complements its female grooming portfolio, which includes the Venus, Braun and joy brands, “through the combination of strong digital and direct-to-consumer marketing capabilities, a growing range of personal care products, and a fresh, digitally-native brand that is especially appealing to Millennial and Gen Z consumers.”

Co-founders Gooley and Bravman will stay on to run Billie within P&G.

No doubt the exit is big news for all investors. Silverton’s General Partner Mike Dodd said his firm was “very fortunate to lead Billie’s seed round and work with such talented entrepreneurs as Georgie and Jason.

“In a short time, they built an amazing brand, product offering, passionate customer base, and company,” he wrote via email.

According to SiliconHills News, Billie donates 1 percent of its revenue to women’s causes including Every Mother Counts, which focuses on making pregnancy and childbirth safe for women.

Illustration: Li-Anne Dias