Venice-based online flower delivery service The Bouqs announced a $6 million round this week to expand its team and its international reach. The round, which was led by Azure Capital Partners, is proof that both investors and customers are buying into The Bouqs’ farm-direct business model.
The Bouqs has a network of flower farms (co-founder JP Montúfar is a fifth generation Ecuadorian farmer) that ship directly to consumers who order via web, iOS or Android.
Though The Bouqs came up empty-handed when it pitched on Shark Tank earlier this year, the current support from investors like Azure, KEC Ventures, Quest Venture Partners, SG-VC, and Siemer is overwhelming. Customer support as well “has exceeded our wildest expectations,” CEO John Tabis told PandoDaily.
“We are growing revenue at 8 to 10x year-over-year largely based on organic channels,” Tabis said. “We have all of the good attributes of e-commerce – brand stickiness, ability to drive demand, and great customer service – and also some of the best things of marketplaces – scalability, efficiency, and the ability to grow big, quickly.”
Azure General Partner Paul Ferris will join the company’s board as a result of this funding round: “We saw strong early proof of the health of this business with 48 percent of customers becoming repeat buyers and customers that sign up for our concierge service buying an average of nine times per year. Customer lifetime value is going up by cohort as well.”
