Zipjet, the on-demand laundry and dry cleaning service, has announced a seven-figure investment from investors including Henkel Ventures and BSH Home Appliances Group. The news follows strong growth figures for Zipjet with revenue increasing 40% year-on-year.
Zipjet is probably Europe’s leading on-demand laundry and dry cleaning service. Founded in 2014, the company today is active in Berlin, London and Paris. Zipjet’s mission is simple: to revolutionize the way laundry is done, liberating consumer tedium and enabling customers to unlock new time.
The fresh capital will be used for business and product development in Zipjet’s markets in London, Paris and Berlin, and extending the startup’s data science team as well as increasing the marketing budget.
Henkel Ventures is the investment arm of chemical and FMCG company Henkel. Home Appliances is Europe’s largest manufacturer of home appliances, including washing machines. The investment is the start of a strategic partnership with BSH taking up a position on Zipjet’s board and the group set to exchange market knowledge.
Florian Färber, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Zipjet, said: “This investment is a strategic play with some of the world’s largest producers of washing machines and detergents. We will be able to collaborate on several projects, enabling us to service more customers and develop our product offering. We’ve adopted a city-centric model which is focused on providing the best and fastest service to areas of high population density. This approach has paid dividends – revenue growth is very strong and this investment will give us the fuel we need to accelerate our growth further.”
Uwe Blanarsch-Simon, Vice President Technical Product Management at BSH Home Appliances, stated: “The purpose of our business is to improve the quality of life of our consumers across the globe. Our goal is to serve our consumers with innovative appliances and solutions that make their everyday life easier and more enjoyable. The cooperation with Zipjet is a perfect complement for our core business in the laundry care section.”
On its growth path Zipjet also acquired a London-based competitor in 2016 and a Paris-based competitor in 2017. Since the very beginning Zipjet has been backed by Rocket Internet.