Online art marketplace Artfinder successfully completed its Crowdcube campaign, finishing the raise on £834,056 from 1,320 investors in four weeks.
Investors in the crowdfunding round will receive equity in the business, at a valuation of £10 million. The business remains open for further direct investment by interested parties until the end of September.
Artfinder is a VC funded startup, backed by the investors behind Spotify and Zoopla. Investors include Wellington Partners, Oxford Capital, Cambridge Angels, plus private investors in the UK, the US and Switzerland. In August 2019, Artfinder became the art world’s first B Corp, solidifying its commitment to its values to support artists and make art affordable and accessible.
It’s the first time Artfinder has run a crowdfunding campaign, following a period of exponential growth. Artfinder recorded its best sales quarter in its seven year history in Q2, with 120% sales growth and 15% increase in average order value, compared to 2019.
The campaign also shone a light on the B Corp community, as fellow B Corp Callaly successfully raised on the platform at the same time.
The annual Hiscox online art trade report confirms the art market has seen incredible online growth, with Sotheby’s seeing a 131% increase in the number of lots it has sold online so far this year.
Michal Szczesny, Artfinder CEO, says: “We believe that Crowdcube’s focus on the B Corp movement was really powerful in convincing their community of investors and entrepreneurs to invest in Artfinder.
“It is an honour for us to be serving such a great community and also to have so many of our artists and customers on board as our shareholders, engaging all our stakeholders in the business.”
Money raised will be used to deliver faster artist payments, an improved seller and buyer experience on the platform, improved customer service and scaled up customer recruitment to bring art to a wider audience of collectors and help more artists sell. Lead investor, VC firm Wellington Partners, have invested £5m in Artfinder to date.
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