Uncover Closes Oversubscribed Funding Round

Uncover, Africa’s emerging beauty brand, successfully closed a $1.4m Seed II funding round led by EQ2 Ventures and igniteXL Ventures, with participation from Chui Ventures, Samata Capital and Altree Capital. As part of the round, Uncover also facilitated a significant secondary transaction to accommodate investors’ demand. Founded in Kenya three years ago, Uncover plans to expand to the Democratic Republic of Congo, following strategic growth into Nigeria, Uganda, and recently to Ghana.

EQ2 Ventures, a Dubai-based investment company that invests across innovative B2B and B2C tech-enabled businesses in the Middle East & Africa, put their money where their mouth is. Patrick Thiriet, CEO of EQ2 Ventures said, “We’ve been following Uncover since the early days, and I must say we kept on being impressed by Sneha and Jade. As investors in several consumer-tech businesses over the last eight years, we’ve rarely seen such a combination of clarity in the vision and maturity in the execution. We believe Uncover’s team has what’s required to build a leading skincare and beauty brand for Africa and are looking forward to helping them in this journey.”

Another investor was igniteXL Ventures, a Silicon Valley-based global fund dedicated to fueling innovation at the intersection of health, technology, and consumer experiences. They participated in Uncover’s seed round and have followed on to co-lead the company’s round. Finally, Chui Ventures, an Africa-based investment company that backs exceptional African start-ups at the early stage of their growth, put their hat in the ring. The round brought together global and local investors to support the Uncover team in their plans to build their tech platform further, launch new products, expand to new markets and continue to leverage data to build the leading skincare brand made with melanin-rich skin in mind. The brand has seen demand for its products not only from Africa but also from diaspora populations globally and is actively working on partnerships in key diaspora markets in North America.

Claire Chang, the Founding Partner of igniteXL Ventures said, “We are incredibly impressed with Uncover’s use of data and technology to understand their core customer’s needs. Uncover has built one of Africa’s most engaged, loyal digital communities by adopting a data-centric approach. Africa’s beauty and wellness sector is poised for substantial growth and Uncover is disrupting the sector with the first brand made by and for women in Africa.”

The data-driven women’s skincare brand was launched by a fully female-founded team. Designed to create highly effective, science-backed products tested and approved by melanated women, Uncover leverages leading K-Beauty technology and innovation, infusing it with the healing powers of African botanicals. Having built a tech platform that supports product discovery, relatable educational information and community engagement, the company has accumulated thousands of data points on women that drive personalisation.

Sneha Mehta, Co-Founder and CEO of Uncover said, “Uncover is much more than a skincare brand. We are a movement to prioritise women of colour who have been side-lined by the beauty industry for generations. The industry has represented only a few skin tones in testing and we are one of the first brands testing on women in Africa. Our data-driven products combined with a tech platform-focused personalisation have fueled the company’s growth. What’s exciting is that we are starting in Africa but seeing global demand and opportunity for our solution.”

Based on the foundation of a loyal and highly engaged digital community of 200,000+ women across Kenya, Nigeria, and the Diaspora, Uncover’s revenue has grown 10x in the last 24 months since their last funding round. The growth was underpinned by their successful expansion to Nigeria, the launch of new data-driven products made specifically with melanin-rich skin women, and investments in their tech platform.

The African beauty market has been identified as the world’s fastest-growing market according to McKinsey’s 2023 global beauty report, growing at twice the world’s average. With a continent that is anticipated as home to the biggest youth population in the next 10 to 15 years, it is still unbelievable how this market has been underserved and neglected in terms of both products and knowledge. It is the astute cross-pollination uncovered by the brand online and offline that has been critical to their scaling of the African beauty market. By leveraging an omnichannel approach, they have been able to build a strong platform driven by data and partnerships with top retailers to drive visibility, trust, and availability.

“We are delighted to partner with a remarkable group of investors who share our vision for the future of women’s skincare and wellness, both on the continent and beyond. They bring a wealth of experience in this industry. This funding will empower us to unlock our next growth stage, expand our product portfolio, enhance our technology, and reach even more consumers seeking personalised skincare solutions, concluded Jade Oyateru, Co-Founder and COO of Uncover.