Alphagreen, a London-based online marketplace for CBD and alternative healthcare products, has secured £1.1 million of seed funding to help roll out new products and services alongside their expansion into the US.
Backers include Stockholm-based Enexis, US cannabis fund West Creek Investments and angel investors, including Igor and Oleg Tikhturov.
The company runs an online marketplace where brands sell various CBD-infused products, from coffee beans to bath bombs to… hand sanitizer. Alphagreen earns revenue from the listings and from offering the brands e-commerce tech services such as translation, SEO and other marketing support. At the moment the majority of turnover comes from commission fees, content creation, and display ads, says the startup. The new funding will allow Alphagreen to expand and emulate another British e-commerce player, The Hut Group, by adding fulfilment, performance marketing, hosting services and data analytics. Walter Arnold of West Creek Investments said, “US brands are looking for growth opportunities in the UK and Europe and Alphagreen provides them with a strong platform to scale in these regions.”
In turn, the UK company plans to create a bespoke platform for the American market as well. Alphagreen co-founder and CEO Alexej Pikovsky has an optimistic outlook, based on current consumer trends and even the recent presidential election. “The wider US cannabis market is currently enjoying robust expansion, with the sector rallying by over 50 percent in the last month. On top of this, investor optimism has been boosted by hopes Joe Biden’s presidential victory could lead to further decriminalisation. In addition, the UN next month will be discussing descheduling cannabis as well as providing clarity around the international trade of CBD products,” he explained.
Originally from Russia by way of Germany, Pikovsky founded the company with Ukrainian Viktor Khliupko in 2019.
Photo: Co-founder and CEO Alexej Pikovsky
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