Harry’s launches ‘Flamingo’ brand for women
Grooming company Harry’s has been selling razors with German-engineered blades to men since 2011. Now, the company is targeting women customers with its new brand ‘Flamingo,’ which will sell razors, moisturizer, waxing kits and other grooming supplies. The brand is a product of Harry’s Labs, an innovation group within the company. According to Fortune, Flamingo will “embrace women’s bodies” (bumps, dry skin and all), and will work to “dispel notions of feminine perfection.” [Fortune Magazine]
Hot wheels: JPMorgan to lead Lyft IPO
Things are heating up in the ride-sharing space: Lyft, which is expected to IPO in the first half of 2019, announced that it has selected JPMorgan Chase & Co. as the lead underwriter of its initial public offering, along with Credit Suisse Group and Jefferies Group. Lyft’s valuation is speculated to exceed the $15 billion it was valued at earlier this year, which followed a whopping $600 million funding round in 2018. [TechCrunch]
LivePerson acquires Conversable
LivePerson, an NYC startup that provides real-time customer engagement solutions, announced that it has acquired Conversable, a conversational AI company that makes bots for chains like Pizza Hut and Dunkin’ Donuts. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. With Conversable, LivePerson will be able to speed up reaching its goal of offering conversational commerce tools to its customers. [VentureBeat]
NYC tech makes it rain
WhiteSource with $35M: WhiteSource, which helps companies identify and mitigate cyberthreats caused by vulnerabilities in the open source code they rely on, announced on Wednesday that it has raised $35 million to expand its fleet of engineers. Susquehanna Growth Equity led the round, in which 83North and M12 participated. The cybersecurity startup has offices in NYC, Tel Aviv and Boston. [TechCrunch]
Canary with $25M: Say cheese. Canary, a maker of smart security cameras for the consumer market, has scored a $25 million investment from German competitor Smartfrog. The investment gives the European company a controlling interest in Canary, and a launching board for expansion into the United States market. [TechCrunch]
Hero with $12M: Hero, which makes a connected countertop appliance that automatically sorts and dispenses medication to help healthcare recipients stay safe and on schedule, announced on Tuesday that it has raised a $12 million Series A. Brainchild Holdings led the round, with participation from Naval Ravikant, Box Group, Refactor Capital and Third Kind Venture Capital. [Press release]
Skyline Robotics with $3M: Skyline Robotics, which makes robots for window cleaning and other dangerous skyscraper maintenance, announced a $3 million seed round on Monday. The company has offices in NYC and Tel Aviv, and promises to make window cleaning 18 times faster. Good news for those with a fear of heights and overactive mirror neurons. [Forbes]
