Squared Circles Defines a New Era of Science-Backed Consumer Brands with $40MM Series A Investment Led by L Catterton

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May 30, 2024, 08:44 ET

Funding to Support Squared Circles' Science-backed Innovation of Everyday Products in Health & Wellness

LOS ANGELES, May 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Squared Circles, a consumer-focused venture studio incubating brands grounded in science, announced today the closing of a $40 million Series A funding round led by L Catterton. The investment follows L Catterton's prior participation in the company's Seed round, which had been led by investor Wildcat Capital Management, LLC, and Regeneration VC. With this new funding, Squared Circles plans to launch and scale at least five more health and wellness brands over the next three years.

Founded by Alexander Gilkes, Osman Khan and Lukas Derksen, Squared Circles is a venture incubator with a focus on creating science-backed consumer products in the food, beverage, and health and wellness spaces. The founding team collectively has over 60 years of experience in building brands and has launched eight companies, and to date, Squared Circles has built and launched three companies: Magic Molecule, a skin health solution that recreates a compound naturally produced by the white blood cells — hypochlorous acid; Algae Cooking Club, a healthy oil and fats product derived from microalgae, disrupting the $50B edible oils and fat end market and co-founded by Eleven Madison's Daniel Humm; and Freaks of Nature, a high performance skin microbiome brand designed for the 164M outdoor enthusiasts in the U.S. alone, with Kelly Slater as Co-Founder.

Differentiating itself from other venture studios, Squared Circles licenses novel bioscience IP to deliver targeted product experiences and competitive moats and leverages a stage-gated playbook supported by generative AI to speed up innovation and improve efficiency.

"We're thrilled to support Squared Circles as they create some of the most forward-thinking and innovative products that leverage science and AI to meet the needs of the consumers of tomorrow," said Jon Owsley, Managing Partner of L Catterton's Growth Fund. "Their targeted approach to consumables, expert grasp of consumer mindset and behavior, and seamless fusion of science with culture fill an important gap in the market. Squared Circles is set to lead the next wave of profitable, impactful innovation that benefits both people and the planet."

"We want to work with scientists to shape a future where consumer products benefit both individuals and the planet," said Osman Khan, Co-founder and CEO of Squared Circles. "We are excited to collaborate with leading consumer-focused investors such as L Catterton who not only share our long-term vision for creating transformational brands, and our dedication to ingenuity and sustainability, but also bring the extensive consumer expertise and deep operational knowledge that will help support our future endeavors."

The funding follows Squared Circles' release of the 2024 Conscious Maximalist™ Report, which identifies a new conscious consumer mindset shift shared by 46 million Americans and provides a blueprint for brands to succeed in 2024 and beyond.

To learn more about Squared Circles, their recent brand launches, and future incubations, visit squaredcircles.com.

About Squared Circles

Squared Circles is a consumer-first venture studio, co-founded by Osman Khan, Alexander Gilkes and Lukas Derksen. They build and launch companies focused on a tension unearthed around the audience that they term The Conscious Maximalist™ (their 2024 Conscious Maximalist™ Report, based on insights from over 3,000 consumers, identifies America's new wave of conscious consumerism). They leverage the latest innovations in bioscience to create health and wellness products that are better for you and the planet. To date they have launched three companies, which include Magic Molecule, Algae Cooking Club, and Freaks of Nature. They are backed by investors who include L Catterton, Regeneration.VC and David Bonderman.