36Kr learned that pet lifestyle brand VETRESKA (hereinafter referred to as uncarded) recently completed a $20 million A2 and B round of financing. Among them, the B round of financing was led by private equity investment firm Clervue Partners Kaiming Investment, the A2 round of financing at the beginning of this year was led by Huachuang Capital, and the old shareholder SIG Haina Asia Venture Capital Fund invested two rounds of investment. Chasing Light Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor for two rounds of funding.
Donald Kng, founder and CEO of uncard, told 36Kr that as of July, the turnover of uncarded cards this year has reached the level of last year, and the annual turnover is expected to double compared with last year.
In addition to the domestic market, the uncarded overseas market, which is mainly based on the United States, began to promote the development of online self-operated business and offline distribution business in the United States. In 2021, we also plan to create a localized brand with a non-card gene with a local partner in Japan through franchise licensing.
This year, uncarded U.S. Amazon direct sales reached hundreds of thousands of dollars in single-day sales on Prime Day. Donald said sales of the products in the U.S. market are growing rapidly. On the one hand, uncarded pet products are mainly based on cacti, watermelon, cherry and other elements in terms of design, which have a high degree of recognition for consumers in different countries and are easy to resonate. In addition, the products also cut from different scenarios to meet the needs of overseas consumers.
(Uncard imported cat food brand VETRESKA KIBBLES NZ)
In addition to the export business, VETRESKA KIBBLES NZ, a brand of imported staple food from New Zealand, will be fully listed early next year. "Let pets eat healthier" has become one of the trends of domestic consumption upgrading, and the popularity of imported pet food is rising. According to data released by Tmall International, from January to July this year, Tmall International's pet product sales increased by more than 90% year-on-year.
The uncarded imported staple food brand will differentiate itself from the current high-end imported pet food brand by focusing on high quality and high cost performance. At present, the category of uncarded pet products is mainly concentrated in cat supplies and cat snacks, and the launch of VETRESKA KIBBLES NZ cat food is one of the actions of the uncarded entry into the pet FMCG market, and it is also a key step to improve the current brand category.
36Kr has reported on uncarded cards many times. Product innovation ability is one of the advantages of the uncard, the team initially upgraded pet consumer goods from the perspective of anthropomorphism and scenario, combining the elements that women like and pay attention to with product design, improving product uniqueness and topicality, stimulating users' desire to share, and giving products social attributes. This year, the explosive products launched without cards include the "pet bubble box" that opens a new way of traveling, and the cat snack "milk tea cat strip cup" inspired by milk tea.
(Uncarded "Pet Bubble Box")
After anthropomorphizing pets, Unka began experimenting with the use of elements from pets in turn into human product design. For example, it has cooperated with nail polish brand Miss Candy to launch a nail polish set with cat element sequins, and hashtag hashtag to launch a cat-themed eyeshadow palette. Next, the uncard will develop to a group play, focusing on women's consumer demand and developing a brand matrix.
The rise of the "she economy", the pursuit of quality, the focus on appearance, maverick, from pleasing him to pleasing herself are becoming a new trend in young women's consumption. As a first step towards brand collectivization, the team launched the Jewelry Accessories Designer brand this year. The brand's monthly sales exceeded one million within six months of its launch, and it has entered more than 50 well-known buyers across the country.
Donald explained that the uncard is aimed at women's lifestyles, on the one hand, hoping to effectively seize the living space of users from different categories. In addition to pet supplies, Weika also hopes to further extend its products to scenes such as women's dressers, desks, and living rooms, with the ultimate goal of covering women's food, clothing, and housing. Other female consumer brands that do not currently have cards are also in preparation.
In the sales process, the practice of not having a card is "channel first". The brand has mastered relatively mature channel resources in the early days of its establishment. Unlike most cutting-edge brands that mainly sell on online e-commerce platforms, uncarded cards are still dominated by offline distribution models, and distribution accounts for about 90% of total sales. Next year, the uncard also plans to increase the layout of e-commerce and brand building.