Blank Beauty closes Series A raise with backing from Epson, RPM, 3Roots, and Evolution VC Partners
This marks an exciting milestone for the Knoxville-based robotic nail polish manufacturing company.
After moving from Memphis to Knoxville, Blank Beauty, a robotic nail polish manufacturing company, is proving that big innovation can happen in small batches – and the world is noticing.
Founder Charles Brandon recently announced the close of a Series A funding round, led by none other than Epson and RPM — two publicly traded companies with deep roots in color, manufacturing, and robotics. Additional funding in the series A came from Evolution VC Partners, a New York-based “culture-tech” venture investment firm. And Knoxville’s very own Three Roots Capital LLC.
Yes, you read that right — two highly successful VC firms and two massive global corporations are backing a nail polish manufacturing startup based in Knoxville.
RPM is one of the largest paint companies in the world. In addition to their well-known home DIY and construction productions, they also own many specialty brands, including Kirker, the largest nail polish manufacturer in the U.S.
Epson, meanwhile, is best known as a Japan-based company, best known for its printers. But Brandon said that barely scratches the surface. At its core, Epson is a robotics, color science, and advanced manufacturing company.
“Typically, when you raise money from people, you go to them,” Brandon said. “But to see our robots in action, both RPM and Epson have been coming to Knoxville. It’s not a short trip — as you can imagine, there are no direct flights from Japan to Knoxville.”
It’s All About Who You Know
Brandon initially bought three robots from Epson. That’s when he met a company sales representative.
“They check in after some time to make sure everything is running smoothly. He noticed we painted our Epson robot pink,” Brandon said with a laugh. “It sounds silly and trivial, but most people don’t paint industrial robots pink.”
It started a longer conversation about Blank Beauty’s “Huey” robot and how it can mix just a few primary colors into thousands of customizable nail polish shades. Brandon also mentioned that the robots were being installed in Walmart stores.
“This caught the attention of Epson because normally their robots are behind the scenes, and now they’re being seen by tens of thousands of people in Walmart,” Brandon said.
From a sales perspective, Blank Beauty is a small client — they only started with a purchase of four robots. But Epson saw big potential in the startup’s plans to expand into other industries.
The RPM connection began through Kirker. For years, Blank Beauty had been purchasing colorless nail polish in bulk. One day, Kirker reached out to learn more, and the relationship grew from there.
Grady Vanderhoofven, the President of Three Roots Capital shared his excitement for being a part of the Blank Beauty series A round.
“We have been impressed by Charles and his leadership team, by the technology and product pipeline, by the supporting cast – including especially APTUS DesignWorks in Alcoa, and by the company’s ability to attract capital from significant strategic investors,” he said.
Vanderhoofven shared that one of the biggest encouragements regarding Blank Beauty is the potential for a large, positive economic impact in the Knoxville region.
“This is the type of tech-based, high-growth-potential company many of us in the region are interested in attracting or creating,” Vanderhoofven said.
Allocating the Money
“I’m thankful for the fundraising, but I’m not celebratory. I think it’s more important what you do with the money rather than just receiving a check in the mail,” Brandon said.
He plans to use the Series A funding to develop a fully autonomous micro-factory. While Huey is part of the solution, Brandon is working with Ben Nibali, President of APTUS DesignWorks, to create a system that automates e-commerce orders, producing custom nail polish on demand.
Brandon is naming the e-commerce robot “Dolly,” inspired by the East Tennessee icon, and her great work in the area
“The first goal is to build a business around nail polish manufacturing, generating anywhere from $3 to $5 million in revenue,” Brandon said. “Once you have that traction, nobody questions your ability to launch a second project.”
He envisions Blank Beauty’s robotic mixing technology expanding into industries like home paint, automotive coatings, and even makeup foundation.
But for now, Brandon is staying focused, with both hands in the nail polish game. And he’s doing so from his new office space in the Old City on the lower level of the JFG building.
Visit the Blank Beauty website.
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