London-based ‘skintech’ start-up lands £10m funding

The London-based start-up Skin + Me has raised £10m in funding to help women achieve their skin goals.

The teledermatology service aims to “change the face of skincare” with an new prescription-based approach that allows users to receive personalised, made-to-order treatments and shop more responsibly.

Launched in 2020, the start-up offers treatments formulated with prescription-only active ingredients for customers looking to tackle skin conditions such as acne, rosacea, dark spots and pigmentation, or skin concerns like visible pores, fine lines or texture.

“The global skincare industry is worth £140bn and more than 50 per cent of consumers are dissatisfied because they want a product that works,” says Horatio Cary, co-founder and CEO of Skin + Me.

“We built Skin + Me to make medical skincare, proven to be far more effective than any cosmetic products through decades of clinical studies, accessible to everyone. Loyalty and customer love for our products followed because they deliver results.”

To start their treatment, users need to fill out a questionnaire and then they can subscribe to a personalised skincare plan.

Treatment options vary across formulations and, according to the company, pathways are designed by consultant dermatologists and formulated by pharmacist prescribers.

Based on its own research, the start-up has found that customers note a 133 per cent improvement in their skin with an average baseline rating of 3/10 pre-treatment rising to 7/10 after 12 weeks of using the product.

“We’ve seen consumer awareness for prescription-only ingredients such as tretinoin grow exponentially,” Cary explains.

“We expect the £140bn global skincare spend to shift quickly towards prescription-strength ingredients and Skin + Me is ideally placed as the market leader in the UK to take advantage of this trend.”

Will Gibbs, partner at Octopus Ventures, which led the funding round, says: “Octopus Ventures takes pride in backing companies that incite positive and actionable change.

“Increased awareness in prescription ingredients and a growing trend towards personalisation has transformed the skincare market.

“Skin + Me lead the charge with their accelerated growth reflecting a step change that’s seen hyper-educated consumers shun off-the-shelf products in favour of highly efficacious solutions.

“Across Series A and Series B funding, Octopus Ventures has invested a total of £13m to develop Skin + Me — deepening the relationship, and demonstrating their faith in the brand’s market-leading personalisation strategy.”

The funds will be used to accelerate growth via innovations in skincare and new marketing channels.