S’pore brand Love, Bonito raises US$50M in Series C round to fuel omnichannel, expansion efforts

Southeast Asia’s largest omnichannel womenswear brand, Love, Bonito, announced today (October 27) the closing of its Series C funding round, in which it raised a total of US$50 million.

The round was led by Primavera Capital Group, a global investment firm whose previous investments include Alibaba, ByteDance, Yum China and Mead Johnson China. Other investors that participated in the round include Adastria and Ondine Capital.

According to the company, the new injection of funds will enable the brand to bolster efforts in existing omnichannel markets and supercharge international expansion in markets that collectively are experiencing triple digits year-on-year (YoY) growth.

These key markets include Hong Kong, Japan, Philippines and the US. Furthermore, the company is exploring categories outside of fashion as part of its plan to create a female ecosystem.

Powering its international expansion efforts

Love, Bonito started unofficially back in 2006 by former CEO Rachel Lim and friends to sell clothes online for “extra pocket money”. From importing clothes overseas to sell in Singapore, they pivoted to manufacturing their own clothes after realising that ready-to-made clothes didn’t meet their standards.

Rachel then dropped out of school to focus on growing Love, Bonito, which has since achieved impressive growth, expanding into 10 key markets which include those in Southeast Asia, namely Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Cambodia, and East Asia markets, namely Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan as well as Australia and the US.

To date, Love, Bonito has achieved overall growth of over 120 per cent YoY in international markets, and overall growth of 208 per cent for its online sales.

The company believes the Asian diaspora communities have extremely high potential, especially in the US, where online revenue growth exceeded 1,200 per cent YoY as of September 2021. 

With the latest funding, the brand will double down efforts within markets such as Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia that have omni-channel presence, while other markets such as Hong Kong, Japan, Philippines and the US will see an expansion in omni-channels, new business verticals, strengthening of local community engagement and key collaborations, as well as the continuous optimisation of user experiences.

“I am more excited than ever for what is to come in the next decade,” said Rachel Lim, co-Founder of Love, Bonito. “The growth we see today would not have happened without #TeamLB and our #LBCommunity who consistently strive to support women in the different seasons of their lives. Being in the business of women has been our mission since day one, and we are finally venturing outside of fashion to bolster our offerings.”

More than just a fashion line

In line with the brand’s mission to empower the everyday Asian woman, Love, Bonito said that plans are in place to increase offerings within the fashion line to include active apparel and accessories. The brand is also looking to venture into a content platform (LiBrary) as well as exploration into new categories (LaB) which will include wellness.

The category and product expansion strategy is informed and driven by data and community feedback garnered from several platforms, including the brand’s soon-to-be-launched artificial intelligence (AI) that delivers personalisation at scale for women globally, through data and machine-learning models.

Other existing platforms that contribute to the insights and knowledge gathering include LBCommunity+, Love, Bonito’s loyalty programme that provides customers an all-access community and rewards experience; and LBCreate, Love, Bonito’s social impact programme with the mission to bring women’s issues to the forefront and create actionable steps for the future.

“We have built a strong foundation in understanding the everyday Asian woman in order to be pre-emptive in catering to her needs,” said Dione Song, CEO of Love, Bonito.

“We are primed to become a true life partner for our community of women, in and beyond fashion. We have yet to see a womenswear brand from the region stand proud on the world stage amongst industry heavyweights and we want to be the first brand to achieve that, by being purpose-driven, community-focused and innovative.”

In the next phase of its growth, Love, Bonito aims to shake up the fashion industry by creating a more meaningful impact on its community across all life stages. The brand is setting its sights on creating a thoughtful and well-rounded female ecosystem, supporting different facets of women’s needs within Asian countries and reaching further into the Asian diaspora communities across the globe.

Featured Image Credit: Love, Bonito