Many of the things we came to loathe in 2020 will continue on in 2021 - the pandemic, misinformation and injustice. But t...
Problem
Women-owned brands don’t have an equal playing field
Despite the fact that women-owned businesses have grown by nearly 3,000% since the 1970s, women entrepreneurs continue to face systemic obstacles that threaten their ability to scale.
Access to capital is a key issue. Only 2.3% of venture capital funding went towards women-led businesses in 2020. That's less than 1% for women of color. Women entrepreneurs also get offered smaller loans, pay significantly higher interest rates and are less likely to be approved than men.
Emerging women-owned brands have the cards stacked against them. Not only must they overcome the traditional challenges of being an early-stage consumer business, but they also have a deeply unequal playing field.
Solution
The online marketplace to discover, support & shop women-owned brands
Radical Girl Gang provides emerging women-owned brands with the exposure they need to grow and the community they need to thrive. In the last year, we’ve been the launchpad for 75+ women-owned brands across the U.S. — connecting them to a community of conscious consumers who are passionate about shopping women-owned.
We support emerging brands by serving as a critical revenue stream, providing increased exposure and supplemental marketing. Most importantly, we're building a community of like-minded women who are invested in each others' success.
Product
A shopping experience created by and for women
Radical Girl Gang makes it effortless to discover, support, and shop women-owned brands with our best-in-class platform designed by and for women. Our customers are searching for more than a transactional shopping experience. We empower them to actively participate in the success of women entrepreneurs—simply by shopping.
The result: a meaningful shopping experience unlike any other.
In a few simple steps, brands can apply online, open their shop, and start selling. Orders are drop-shipped by brands, enabling us to scale quickly.
Expert curation
Radical Girl Gang is expertly curated, so our customers know they're getting only the best products from the best brands. We offer 8,000+ products across 50+ categories that are hand-selected by merchandisers and vetted by our team.
Value-based shopping
Our innovative UX empowers consumers to shop by their values well beyond women-owned. Conscious consumers come to us to shop small, local, BIPOC-owned, LGBTQ-owned, sustainable, fair-trade, and more. We're passionate about representation, which is why 50% of our brands are helmed by women of color.
Traction
Transformative 2020: 12x growth in monthly revenue & 263% growth rate
Since launching this business as a bootstrapped solopreneur in November 2019, we’ve driven more than 3K in transactions, built a highly engaged community (40K and counting), and driven +34% MoM revenue growth on average. We're damn proud.
We experienced phenomenal growth during 2020 despite the pandemic. Our monthly revenue grew by 12X, and we drove 263% annual growth rate—with $0 in the bank.
That growth trajectory has continued this year. As recently as Q2 2021:
- +34% MoM revenue growth
- +26% MoM transactions
- +300% brands launched
Customers
Women who want to vote with their dollars
While we convert women of all ages, our core customers are diverse Gen Z and millennial women between ages 18-34. Their shopping habits are driven directly by their values and they want to make an impact with the $250B in spending power they control.
Our customers are collaborators and co-producers in the Radical Girl Gang story. They're the bedrock of the movement we're leading together.
Business model
Multiple revenue streams & a high-margin product line
- Our in-house Radical Girl Gang line fuels a quarter of sales, with an average 75% margin
- Launching membership programs for brands & customers
- $0 CAC on brand side with hundreds in queue
As a marketplace model, we take a 20-30% commission on each transaction. Additional revenue streams include wholesale, our in-house Radical Girl Gang line, and memberships for both brands and customers launching in FY22. With your investment, we're on track to generate $1.4M in gross revenue in the next 18 months.
*Marketplace stats FY21
Market
Untapped market potential
Women-owned businesses have grown by nearly 60% in the last decade, with firms owned by women of color growing at nearly 3X that rate (163%). More women are entering entrepreneurship than ever before, but this market is grossly underserved. They're hungry for solutions like Radical Girl Gang—which is why our acquisition cost for brands is $0.
Supporting women entrepreneurs isn't just the right thing to do, it's an overlooked market opportunity with the potential for significant financial returns.
The rise of conscious consumers
Millennial and Gen Z women are conscious consumers who shop in alignment with their personal values. This growing market represents $250B in consumer spending power, with millennial women controlling more than 85% of all spending power.
Women are far more likely to shop women-owned, with one study finding that 90% of female shoppers will go out of their way to buy women-owned products. Coupled with the fact that women alone drive more than 80% of all consumer spending—we think it's worth listening to female consumers.
Competition
Disruptive to our core & trusted by women
Radical Girl Gang is uniquely positioned for growth as a community-first marketplace created by and for women
- Radical Girl Gang is a disruptive brand with the potential to become a household name. Unlike other marketplaces, we lead with our own brand. Our high-margin in-house line fuels brand recognition and sales.
- We sort through hundreds of prospects to discover the most exciting emerging brands. Unlike other "no-barrier" platforms, brands must either apply or be invited to join—enabling us to create a targeted, no-clutter shopping experience perfectly tailored to our audience.
- Our target audience is Gen Z and millenial women. Not only do they have immense buying power, but their buying habits are driven directly by their values.
- Radical Girl Gang is built by and for women entrepreneurs. We aren't outsiders trying to solve a problem we haven't experienced firsthand. We're bootstrappers, dreamers, and hustlers with grit, who intimately understand the obstacles women entrepreneurs face and how to overcome them.
Vision and strategy
A world where women entrepreneurs succeed
Radical Girl Gang is more than a marketplace; it’s an economic engine designed to advance gender equity. Our vision is to become a leading marketplace and household name among radical women. In the process, we're catalyzing the growth of women-owned brands at scale and leveling the playing field for women entrepreneurs.
Continuous growth
To take RGG to the next level, we plan to use the proceeds from this round for:
1. Making essential hires
Your investment will empower us to hire our first full-time team! To date*, only Bre has worked full-time with support from contractors. Key hires include Marketing Manager, Operations Manager, and eCommerce Associate.
2. Marketing & customer acquisition
Your investment will empower us to aggressively fuel customer acquisition and identify repeatable, cost-effective strategies to scale. We'll invest in paid marketing, IRL pop-up experiences, partnerships, press and more. As always, data will guide our decision-making.
3. Expanding in-house line
We'll continue to expand our in-house product line, driving sales and brand awareness. Leveraging the data and insights we have, we'll create strategic additions that fuel loyalty and lifetime value.
*"To date," as of Republic campaign launch
Funding
Backed by investors who understand the potential of women entrepreneurs
We're incredibly proud of every investor who has joined our journey so far. To date, we've raised more than $100K from angel investors who not only share our vision, but also see the results we've driven since day one and ground zero.
Radical Girl Gang was selected for Beam's portfolio. Beam Angel Network invests in high potential and exceptionally led companies that happen to be founded by women.
Founders
Founded by Bre Cruickshank, former Nike and OV alum
Bre Cruickshank is a visionary entrepreneur who doesn't ask for permission. She began her career at Nike World Headquarters, where she worked as an analyst and product line manager. After shifting into eCommerce, Bre relocated to Austin to lead digital merchandising at Outdoor Voices. She founded RGG in 2019 after graduating from the Founder Institute accelerator.
Bre was recently named the Rising Star winner of the 2021 Profiles in Power by Austin Business Journal.