United By Blue, the outdoor brand known for sustainable products that support ocean and waterway conservation, has raised a Series A financing round.
The round was led by Emil Capital Partners with participation from CircleUp, Golda Darty, Connected VC, Patient Capital Collaborative, amongst others.
The company, based in Philadelphia, intends to use the capital to support ongoing innovation within their sustainable supply chain and new product development, as well as an enhanced focus on both digital and wholesale distribution across North America and Europe. United By Blue products can be found in over 1,000 retail locations globally, in three company-run stores, and online at unitedbyblue.com.
United By Blue is well known for its ocean and waterway conservation efforts that have removed nearly 1.5 million pounds of waste from cleanup sites across the 48 contiguous US states, Canada, and Europe. For every product sold, United By Blue pledges to remove one pound of trash from oceans and waterways through company organized and hosted cleanups.
“Ocean plastic pollution is one of the most serious threats to our planet, and it’s an issue we’ve been addressing via our business model for nearly 9 years,” says Brian Linton, founder and CEO. “We believe it’s the responsibility of the private sector to address this global environmental issue before it’s too late. With this funding, we are able to bring our products to more people around the world, and as a result, increase both the awareness towards this issue and scale our cleanup efforts as well.”
In addition to its conservation work, United By Blue is known for supply chain innovations that include utilizing American bison fiber in products such as socks and outerwear. Recently, the company introduced a sustainable down alternative called B100™, a bison fiber insulation exclusively used in all United By Blue outerwear.
“This is our opportunity to further solidify our leadership position in the industry as the generational outdoor brand for Millennials; a consumer who cares deeply about the sustainability of the products they buy as well as the ethics and values of the company they buy it from,” says Mike Cangi, co-founder and brand director.
