Online interior design startup Havenly is acquiring direct-to-consumer home furnishing brand The Inside, the company announced on Thursday. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Under the terms of the deal, Havenly has acquired the key assets of The Inside, including its intellectual property and inventory. The Inside co-founder Danielle Walish will join Havenly to manage the transition and to integrate The Inside assets into Havenly. All current employees of The Inside will also be joining Walish.
Havenly is a network of professional interior designers who create custom visual designs based on clients’ style choices. The company’s e-commerce platform is connected to hundreds of retailers for clients to make direct purchases. As for The Inside, the company uses technologies like digital printing and 3D modeling to rethink the furniture-buying experience. Customers can choose from a variety of furniture models and fabrics, then the company will make the furniture from scratch and deliver it within weeks.
Havenly says the acquisition paves the way to create an innovative design ecosystem. It notes that both brands share a similar mission to make home design an accessible and personalized experience.
“From our perspective, this was a rare opportunity to combine the businesses of two of the leading brands that cater to this new generation of home consumer to create a comprehensive destination for home design and furnishings that is inclusive and accessible — and digitally powered,” Havenly founder and CEO Lee Mayer told TechCrunch. “By acquiring The Inside, Havenly can now offer custom furnishings to design-minded clients, at attractive price points. We envision building on the Inside’s assortment to offer a growing selection of products both to Havenly and The Inside customers, but also to the ever-growing community of home enthusiasts.”
Mayer outlined that the COVID-19 pandemic brought to light the fact that a well-designed home can make an impact on our lives. She noted that millenials are investing in their homes in a new way and are becoming the eventual majority of the home furnishing market and that when there is a generational shift, there’s a need for a new group of brands that operate in a way to service that consumer.
In terms of the future, Mayer said Havenly’s goal is to become the main home destination for this new generation of home consumers. The company wants to create a place for people that inspires them and helps them realize their vision of a home through design services and personalized products.
“We’ll continue to scale our best-in-class product experience to our customers, making expert design services both accessible and fun, both with our core online service, but also in-person, as we expand our premium in-home design services to key markets,” Mayer said. “Over time, we hope to continue to evolve our technology-powered services offering by marrying visualization tools in 3D, exclusive and custom furnishings and a welcoming brand to help everyone create a home they love.”
Havenly’s most recent funding round was its $32 million Series C investment announced in October 2019. The round brought Havenly’s total amount of funding raised to $57.8 million. The company’s Series C investors included Foundry Group, Lerer Hippeau, Kickstart Ventures and Gingerbread Capital.
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