Polish startup Tylko, a modular furniture company that employs augmented reality as part of its sales cycle, has closed a €22 million ($26 million) investment Series C funding round, led by Israel-based Pitango Growth and Finnish Evli Growth Partners, following previous investors TDJ Pitango and Experior Venture Fund. Additionally, Brian Walker, former CEO of Hermann Miller, and Mark Williamson, COO of U.S.-based MasterClass, join as new investors. Tylko has now raised a total of €33 million since its inception in 2015.
It now plans to more than double its team of 140, as well as launch in new markets, and expand its portfolio, which right now is limited to shelving only.
Tylko is not dissimilar from made.com which, to some extent, pioneered the direct-to-consumer furniture market. Like Made, the idea behind Tylko is also direct-to-consumer, “design-on-demand”. The company says it has taken advantage of the period when people have been stuck at home during the pandemic, ordering online, to hit a 132% increase in sales in 2020 in comparison to previous years.
Jacek Majewski, co-founder and co-CEO of Tylko, commented in a statement: “Tylko’s vision has always been about putting the user experience first, in order to create a product that is perfectly designed, high-quality and sustainable. We believe that driving sustainability into this huge industry can only be done by creating highly desirable products that will win over customers by their features rather than certificates.”
Tylko says its furniture is based on “parametric design”, with each item being quite individual. Tylko’s platform then automates the manufacturing process for its production partners.
Mikko Kuitunen, Growth partner at Evli Growth Partners, added: “We are impressed by Tylko’s exceptional growth and ability to scale the company as a market leader, offering new, customized solutions within the furniture market. Tylko’s strong impact-driven vision and made-to-order business model drives the market’s transition towards more sustainable solutions.”
Rami Kalish, general managing partner & co-founder at Pitango Venture Capital commented: “Tylko has a huge vision to disrupt the furniture industry.”
