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E-commerce firm Cornerstone gets £3.5m from Calculus Capital

Cornerstone

E-commerce company Cornerstone, which supplies men’s shaving products, has received £3.5m from private equity firm Calculus Capital.

With this round, Cornerstone has now raised £8m since it launched in 2014.

Cornerstone previously received investment from a series of business angels including: Andy Oldham, Quidco’s CEO; ex-Jack Wills chairman Will Hobhouse; Charles Tyrwhitt’s chairman Nick Wheeler; and ex-President of Levi Jeans Joe Middleton.

Oliver Bridge, the founder, said:  “I’d always hated shaving – it was painful, cost a fortune, and I hated shopping for toiletries. Finally, one day I just thought – there has to be a better way to do this, and I set about finding a way to make it combine great products with the convenience of a subscription service.”

Bridge launched the firm with £10,000 of his own savings and after securing a £5,000 startup loan.

Since then, Cornerstone has raised £1m in crowdfunding and claims is customer base now stands at 140,000 subscribers.

Roshan Puri, of Calculus Capital, added: “As a consumer brand that offers customers quality, value and convenience, Cornerstone is disrupting the men’s shaving and toiletries market in the UK.

“We have been extremely impressed with the company’s almost obsessive focus on ‘the customer’ and industry leading capabilities in customer acquisition and management.

“A high quality management team is a key part of our investment criteria. Oliver and the senior team at Cornerstone have shown their ability to deliver significant business growth and build a well-run organisation, capable of using third party investment to deliver strong returns.”

Cornerstone now employs 27 people in its London HQ.

For the latest investment deals in UK tech, check out UKTN’s investment tracker.

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