The cannabis accessories company looks to expand nationwide
Cannabis accessories and lifestyle brand Hemper conducted a seed funding round this past summer that saw it receive only $1 million. With the increased attention the cannabis space has received over the latter of the year- and the pending approval of the 2018 Farm Bill to legalize hemp – companies are looking to take advantage of the newfound interest and have begun to seek out additional funds. This is the case for Hemper, as well, which has announced that it has wrapped up a Series A funding round that saw it receive “definitive agreements” worth a total of $10 million.
The money will be used to develop the first nationwide online cannabis-ordering platform in the U.S. There are other similar systems in place, but they all operate on only a regional level. The funds will also be used to increase sales efforts and for product and marketing development.
Poseidon Asset Management out of California and New York-based Evolution VC Partners led the latest funding round. Poseidon exclusively targets the cannabis industry for its investments and Evolution was the only investor to get involved in Hemper’s previous funding attempt.
According to Hemper’s co-founder and CEO, Bryan Gerber, “Hemper has evolved from a monthly subscription service providing novel smoking and replenishment accessories to a cult following to become a diversified brand appealing to a more mainstream audience in addition to our core fans. This financing will help us meet this growing demand, develop new items to expand our product portfolio, and serve a growing market whose consumers are demanding better quality.”
