Dôen secures Series A funding led by Silas Capital
California-based womenswear brand Dôen has secured investment led by growth equity firm Silas Capital to accelerate its retail expansion. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Dôen, founded by Santa Barbara-born sisters Margaret and Katherine Kleveland, has become known for its feminine silhouettes, environmental commitments, and women-first ethos and has organically built a growing 100 million US dollar revenue business.
It launched in 2016 as a direct-to-consumer label offering women's dresses, knits and tops, footwear, and childrenswear. Since then, the brand has evolved into a full lifestyle brand, expanding to include outerwear, denim, swimwear, sleep and loungewear, delicates, and a home capsule.
The brand, which launched a collaboration with American retailer Gap last year, closed its Series A funding round to secure capital to further accelerate its brand growth by enhancing its infrastructure, accelerating the brand's physical retail expansion into 'key markets' and strengthening 'its connection with a growing global customer base'. Before this round, Dôen had raised only 1 million US dollars in outside capital.
Margaret Kleveland, co-founder and chief executive of Dôen, said in a statement: "This has been a long time in the making, as our top priority was finding a partner who aligns with our values and long-term vision for growing Dôen.
"Silas Capital has a strong track record of supporting authentic, organic community building and helping their portfolio companies scale in thoughtful, sustainable ways. We couldn't be more excited for what's ahead for Dôen." American brand Dôen looking to scale retail expansion following Series A round
Dôen currently operates seven stores in the US, including recent openings in Marin, California and Nantucket, Massachusetts. Retail sales in aggregate have grown 80 percent year-over-year, while comp store sales are up 46 percent, including 65 percent growth at its Bleecker Street location in New York alone.
E-commerce is also thriving with 40 percent growth year-over-year, while wholesale bookings are up 110 percent year-to-date.
The womenswear brand first launched with wholesale partner Net-a-Porter in 2019, followed by domestic partnerships with American retailers Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom, and has been continuing to scale internationally and is stocked in more than 150 retailers, including Harrods in the UK, Holt Renfrew (Canada), Le Bon Marché in France, SKP in China, Ounass in the UAE, Tom Greyhound in South Korea, and Bongénie in Switzerland.
Dôen has also been driving brand awareness and community building through brand and creative partnerships, including two collections with Gap and collaborations with Reformation, K. Jacques, RMS Beauty, and Library Science, Kaia Gerber and Alyssa Reeder's book club.
Brian Thorne, partner at Silas Capital, added: "Dôen is truly an exceptional brand – seamlessly blending its timeless appeal with product that offers both sophistication and practicality.
"We see tremendous potential to help grow their deeply loyal community by amplifying e-commerce momentum and further scaling the highly productive retail footprint. We are thrilled to partner with Margaret and Katherine at such a pivotal moment in their journey."
Dôen is headquartered in Van Nuys, California and has a team of 160 employees.
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