Florismart, an online marketplace for flowers and plants, has just secured its first equity round since its founding in July 2014.
Managed by Steve France, former director of Arena Flowers and the British Florist Association, the startup has received £1.3m from Beaubridge – a fund which Beauhurst has not seen since its £1.2m investment into Smilepod, in 2011.
Based in Lambeth, Florismart is designed to allow independent florists direct access to a variety of suppliers and products at competitive prices. It claims to be the world’s first online flower market, and is set to disrupt an industry traditionally dominated by larger corporate players.
Numerous other startups have turned their attention to flowers and horticultural innovation in recent years: Bloom & Wild, a flower delivery service, stands out as having raised the largest amount of £7.2m, with Primrose, an online garden centre, having raised £4m; FLOWERBX (similar to Bloom & Wild in function) has raised £2.44m. The average company valuation for these startups is £2.75m, and 2017 has seen a sharp increase in both the number and value of fundraisings into the sector.
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