Beni closes $4 million seed round

Secondhand re-commerce shopping technology company Beni announced on Tuesday the closing of a seed round of $4 million, bringing its funding to $5 million to date.

The round was led by Buoyant Ventures and is joined in the seed round by Better Ventures and pre-seed investors XYZ Venture Capital, Chingona Ventures, and Starting Line Ventures. The women-owned company has been funded primarily by women in both the pre-seed and seed round.

"We started Beni to make resale more accessible," said CEO Sarah Pinner, who co-founded Beni with CTO Celine Mol. "Beni saves shoppers hours of scrolling and helps resale sites get the right inventory to the right shoppers. With this financial backing, we will grow our team and scale Beni to accelerate the adoption of resale.”

Beni launched as a free and easy-to-use browser extension that makes secondhand shopping seamless, back in August. It works by suggesting similar listings from leading resale sites, whenever a shopper finds something they want. In particular, Beni suggests items from leading resale marketplaces such as The RealReal, Rent the Runway, Vestiaire Collective, Ebay, Kidizen, and more.

The company continues to develop its technology and partnerships to consistently surface the best secondhand options to shoppers. Most recently, it launched a pilot program with Patagonia's WornWear, and is currently working across the retail industry to usher in a new era of circularity.

"Beni will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions and water use associated with fashion retail all while helping shoppers save money. Buoyant Ventures, a female-owned venture fund, is proud to support this female executive team who is on a mission to help transform the circular economy," said Amy Francetic, managing general partner of Buoyant Ventures.

“Extending the life of our clothes is key to reducing waste and creating a more circular economy. It’s no secret that resale is booming, driven by consumer preferences for sustainability and cost savings. We were drawn to Beni’s unique and data-driven approach to unlock secondhand shopping for every consumer," said Lyndsey Boucherle, partner of Better Ventures.

Beni closes $4 million seed round

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