Kiki secures funding from Estée Lauder's investment arm NIV and A16z Crypto

Kiki, the community commerce beauty company, has raised 7 million US dollars from investors, including A16z Crypto and The Estée Lauder Companies' investment arm New Incubation Ventures (NIV).

Other initial funding round investors included consumer-tech funds Double Down, 2Punks Capital and Advancit, digital communities RedDao and OrangeDao, and the digital creator GMoney.

The investment from A16z Crypto follows Kiki's participation in its spring 2023 Crypto Startup Accelerator programme, with Kiki adding that NIV invested in November 2022 at Kiki's concept stages before launch.

In a statement, Kiki said the investment would allow it to open its proprietary platform to a variety of creators and brands, so that they can “connect and launch rich campaigns driven by their communities, in addition to fuelling Kiki's own created product lines”.

Jana Bobosikova, Brendon Garner, and Ricky Chan, co-founders at Kiki, said: "Brand websites are valuable for not only selling but also educating, and Kiki's innovative platform strategically takes brand.com capabilities a step further to leverage community and drive creativity as trends rapidly emerge.

“Kiki sees the internet and the communities it connects as the engine that creates, not merely consumes, the brands and products that will define the next generation, and is building tools to make this elevated customer experience a reality."

Established in early 2023, Kiki is a community-focused beauty brand where products are co-created by user audiences and their feedback, using the firm's proprietary platform and blockchain infrastructure developed as a new way for consumers to connect with each other and the brand outside of the historical web2 channels and social media.

It has launched five innovative physical product collections since it launched in May 2023, including Skin Development Kit, a skincare line where customers can vote on the key ingredients and launch order, and Pretty Nail Graffiti, an NFC tag-enabled nail pen where consumers can choose the next colour.

Shana Randhava, senior vice president at NIV, The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC), added: "Consumers are at the heart of what we do at The Estée Lauder Companies. That's why we're excited by the Kiki team's vision of finding new ways to put the customer first.

“Kiki brand with their custom-built platform is leveraging the forefront of web3 tech to rethink the future of how consumers can co-create with brands and engage in new and relevant ways. This exploration of a new consumer-centric model provides ELC with a valuable window into the future of beauty."