Beauty retailer Birchbox acquired by women’s health care/beauty startup
The company that pioneered beauty subscription box retailing has been acquired.
Birchbox has been acquired by FemTec Health, a women’s wellness startup focused on using technology and data for personalized care. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
The company plans to relaunch Birchbox, shifting the focus from beauty to curated personalized skin and healthcare products. Birchbox subscribers can expect to see more wellness products soon, company founder Katia Beauchamp told Women’s Wear Daily.
Launched in 2010, Birchbox opened a physical store in Manhattan’s Soho district in 2014. (The store closed in 2018). In 2018, it entered into a partnership with Walgreens.
"I have always believed in the power of women as a community, and I believe this is a natural step in the evolution of Birchbox,” Beauchamp stated in a release. “Eleven years ago, we were compelled by an ability to build deep customer relationships month after month. FemTec's vision for the future of women's healthcare was inspirational to me and I could see the opportunity for the thousands of women in the Birchbox community to extend beyond consumer beauty products to a more holistic health and wellness offering."
In addition to Birchbox, the company has also acquired Liquid Grids, a social marketing platform for the healthcare industry that has over 1.5 million members, to further the growth of its robust community of women, and Mira Beauty, a digital beauty shopping tool and search engine.
FemTec is building a platform called BiomeAI that will use artificial intelligence and machine learning to connect consumers to a range of health care offerings. The company plans to use the platform to personalize skin and health care offerings through Birchbox,
“Our first acquisitions within women's health and beauty are key to our mission to revolutionize the women's healthcare and beauty industry,” said Dr. Angelides, executive chairman and interim CEO. “Women deserve a comprehensive, all encompassing model designed specifically for them. The starting point is to really understand a woman's healthcare needs and then apply smart technology like AI and predictive analytics to translate the data into actionable outcomes,"
FemTech has raised more than $38 million to date. Investors include Longmont Capital, Ithaca LifeSciences, Unilever Ventures, Shiseido, e.Ventures, Viking Global and Trinity Capital
“As a woman and a scientist, I have often been the sounding board for friends and family on their wellness journey,” said Kim Capone, chief scientific officer, FemTech. “What I hear consistently is that women do not know where to go, or what products to choose that may help. This is where FemTec Health's unified and coordinated platform comes in - we provide personalized services and science-based products that are meaningful and effective for women at all stages of their lives.”