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Cuyana
Retail apparel and fashion
- 21-100 employees
- B2C
- Retail
- Lifestyle
- Sustainability
- Fashion
- eCommerce
- Tenderloin, San Francisco, CA
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Company mission
To streamline the e-commerce production chain and go direct-to-consumer to offer high-quality, timeless pieces at attainable prices.
Few candidates hear
back within 2 weeks
7% employee growth in 12 months
Our take
Cuyana sells premium sustainable women’s fashion items, predominantly leather and loungewear, direct-to-consumer through its ecommerce store. More recently the company has expanded offline to seven brick-and-mortar locations in the US, as well as a travelling showroom.
The company is attempting to disrupt the culture of fast fashion by calling on consumers to buy less, but buy better. It’s a large task to undertake, but Cuyana appears to be making great headway. Already, 40% of its sales are from repeat buyers, indicating a hard core of support from conscious shoppers.
In 2019, Cuyana raised $30 million in series C funding from H.I.G Growth Partners, one of the largest rounds ever for a female owned fashion retailer. It’s this funding which led to the expansion of its physical stores, which are seen more as a marketing hub which further drives online sales.
For further growth, the company will be banking on continued loyalty as well as more visibility in the mainstream. The latter has arrived to some degree in the form of Meghan Markle, who publicly wears Cuyana goods, drawing much more brand awareness.
Keeping true to its sustainability focus, Cuyana has launched a resale programme, where fashion lovers can buy, sell and donate unwanted garments through a plug-in integrated within Cuyana’s online shop.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Company values
- Cultivate Community – you are honest, inclusive and always willing to lend a hand
- Create Excellence – you are accountable, decisive and drive for results
- Build & Evolve – you are curious, look to push the status quo by bringing new solutions, and seek feedback along the way
Funding (2 rounds)
Feb 2019
$30m
SERIES C
Jun 2013
$1.7m
SEED
Total funding: $31.7m
This company has top investors
Leadership
Karla Gallardo
(CEO)Was an Investment Banking Analyst at Goldman Sachs. Worked in Business Analysis and Strategy at Apple.
Shilpa Shah
(Co-Founder)Formerly Manager of Information Architecture at Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, previously Design Director of Punchcut.