Customized beauty company Proven has raised a $12.2 million Series A from existing investors, with NewH2 Ventures acting as lead investor.
Proven, which already raised around $9 million in previous rounds, operates two brands: Proven Skincare, the AI-powered, personalized skin care brand launched in 2019, and Noteworthy, a personalized fragrance line that launched earlier this year.
The company said it is on track to clock in more than $35 million in revenue in 2023 and be profitable by the end of the year. Within that, Noteworthy has already generated upward of $5 million in revenue since its launch earlier this year.
“Since Proven launched in 2019, we have built industry-leading technology that allows us to create personalized beauty products unlike anything ever available to the public, and this new funding allows us to continue our essential work of making personalized skin care and fragrance the standard,” said Ming S. Zhao, who founded the company in 2017 with Dr. Amy Yuan.
With this funding, Zhao plans on investing in brand growth through creating new products, advancing technology, and expanding the brands’ reach through growth marketing and creative partnerships. Proven will also be looking to grow its team.
Noteworthy operates by first asking customers to take the Fragrance Finder Quiz, which includes a few questions about customers’ personality, life experience and individual preferences to create their fragrance profile. From the profile, the algorithm is then able to determine their personalized scent recommendations.
The Discovery Kit containing four curated fragrance samples is $24.99, the Travel Spray is $37.49, and each of the 3.3 oz eau de parfums cost $124.99.
Proven Skincare, meanwhile, also begins with a three-minute quiz, from which Proven’s algorithm analyzes millions of factors to select the best ingredients for customers’ skin.
The brand offers five products personalized to customers’ needs: Personalized Cleaner, Personalized Day Moisturizer, Personalized Night Cream, Personalized Day Eye Cream and Personalized Night Eye Cream.