London’s direct-to-consumer home decor startup Lick raises $22 million in Series A round

London-based direct-to-consumer home decor startup Lick has raised $22 million in a Series A round led by OMERS Ventures. The round also saw participation from existing investor Felix Capital as well as Angel Investors Tetra Pak heir Magnus Rausing, Alex Chesterman, and Kathaka, the family office of Caroline Rupert of Richemont. Lick reports that the funding has been earmarked to expand product offerings, launch new sustainability initiatives, and foster community development.

Founded in mid-2019 by Lucas London and Sam Bradley, Lick has specifically targeted the growing spending power of millennials through a content-rich consumer journey. In a sector where only 4% of all paint in the UK is sold online, Lick identified the need for targeted marketing and ran with it.

Lick’s timing couldn’t have come at a better (?) time, for if the pandemic taught us nothing else, one's surroundings are a key factor in life quality.

The startup offers a range of paints, wallpapers, and blinds, but more so has a plethora of design tips and inspiration mood boards that are clearly speaking to their target audience. And in touch with the zeitgeist, Lick is committed to sustainability, offering to plant one tree for every roll of wallpaper or pair of blinds sold.

Lick has a 38 person team composed of former FarFetch and Charlotte Tilbury members, and reports a $7 million revenue run-rate within the first 8 months, with the company seeing 830% in just the last 9 months.

“In the short time since its launch, Lick has completely shaken up this sector, by re-thinking every step of the customer journey from inspiration to decoration, for the modern digital-native consumer and professional decorator”, says OMERS Ventures Managing Partner, Harry Briggs. “We believe this team and this brand have what it takes to become global category leaders and help millions of people transform their homes.”