Social commerce company Replika Software has closed its Series A financing round with an undisclosed amount of funding from the investment arms of luxury house LVMH and beauty brand L’Oréal.
Replika’s solution is designed to help brands activate their sales associates and brand ambassadors to sell more effectively online. Replika will use the funding from LVMH Luxury Ventures and L’Oréal Business Opportunities for L’Oréal Development (BOLD) to expand to new brands and industries, invest in its technology, introduce new features and add to its team. Representatives from LVMH Luxury Ventures and L’Oréal BOLD will also join Replika’s Board of Directors.
“When we founded Replika, we envisioned a future where every brand would be able to benefit from the power of social selling,” said Kareen Mallet, Co-Founder of Replika Software, and former Fashion Director of Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman, in a statement. “After concluding commercial arrangements with several Maisons of LVMH and brands of L’Oréal, it is tremendously satisfying to see that the investment arms of two of the world’s most forward-thinking companies have decided to invest in our vision. We’re thrilled to have their support as we enter this phase of growth and lead the industry toward humanizing online shopping.”
Replika’s relationship with LVMH started in 2019, when Replika was selected as a finalist for the LVMH Innovation Award at the Viva Technology (VivaTech) trade show. The company was then invited to participate in LVMH’s accelerator, La Maison des Startups, at startup campus Station F in Paris. The two organizations’ business relationship has continued to expand since, with deployments in both Europe and the U.S. and now this Series A funding.
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L’Oréal also discovered Replika at VivaTech, after which Chief Digital Officer Lubomira Rochet led the deployment of the solution across several of its brands in various countries around the world.
“We believe this funding will help us shift the current online selling paradigm, not only in the fashion and beauty industries, but in the broader healthcare, entertainment, travel and electronics industries as well,” said Corey Gottlieb, Co-founder of Replika in a statement.
