OrgHive seeks up to USD 10m in Series A for customer acquisition, platform upgrades – CEO
04 September 2020
OrgHive, a Chinese online community platform for organic products, is seeking to raise up to USD 10m through a proposed Series A fundraise by 2021, offering an adequate war chest for customer acquisition, said Chief Executive Officer Anastasios Papadopoulos.
The first tranche, which equals to around USD 5m of the planned Series A, is scheduled to be concluded by the end of the year, he said.
Both strategic and financial investors are welcome, he said.
“However, we highly prefer new investors who could adhere to the values of the company, which are promoting healthy eating and increasing transparency in the Chinese organic and natural space,” he noted.
Most of the proceeds will be slated for customer acquisition costs to drive future enterprise growth, aiming to boost registered users by 15x to reach 3 million in 18 months, from the current 200,000, he said. The existing user number also represents over 10m views across its website and social media channels, he added.
The company is confident of achieving its goals as it has seen a great demand for organic products in China, he said. For example, China’s organic food market is predicted to surpass USD 13bn in sales by 2024, he explained.
Apart from that, the rest of the proceeds will be used for technology upgrades, including the establishment of organic certification software and launching of new features on the platform, he added.
OrgHive is co-founded by Asia-based IMS Digital Ventures and Chief Operating Officer Patrick Kaminski, he said.
The company, having been established in 2019 and having launched its platform in early 2020, helps different merchants market their organic products that range from food and supplements to cosmetics and fashion products, and thus reach, engage and convert their most relevant customers, according to its website.
At present, OrgHive has a dozen of brands available or almost ready on the platform, with 60 brands in the pipeline, Papadopoulos said, adding that it aims to reach 100 brands in 18 months.
Its revenue model is built on a subscription basis with three membership tiers, each offering different levels of brand and product exposure on the platform, he said. The lowest tier level starts at USD 5,000, while the medium is at USD 10,000 and the highest is at USD 15,000, he continued.
The CEO declined to disclose OrgHive’s financial figures, but said that “we are running close to break even.”
The company currently employs 50 people, he said. It could not identify any direct competitor, he further noted.
by Eva Ng and Wong Ka-chun in Hong Kong
