apps Archives - SHOPPE BLACK

Published on September 3, 2021

1 min read

Barbershop App theCut Raises $4.5M, Has Helped Barbers Generate $500M in Revenue

theCut is a mobile platform for barbers and clients modernizing the barbershop experience. Today, the company announced that they have raised $4.5 million in new funding.

The Northern Virginia-based startup provides information and reviews on barbers for potential customers while also helping barbers manage mobile payments, appointments, and other back end tasks.

Clients can easily search for and discover new barbers, then book and pay for haircuts at their convenience. After completing an appointment, clients can review the barber and shout out a job well done.

Barbers can then manage all those clients, appointments, and payments with one easy to use tool.

Founded in 2016 by high school best friends, Obi Omile Jr. and Kush Patel, theCut has successfully booked 2 million appointments by over 350,000 clients who visited 22,000 barbers across the country. This has helped barbers generate more than $500 million in revenue since the app launched.

Nextgen Venture Partners led the funding round and was joined by Leadout Capital, Elevate Ventures, and Singh Capital. This brings total funding to $5.35 million.

The new investment will be used to hire additional talent, marketing and grow the business across the country.

Tony O. Lawson

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Published on December 9, 2020January 14, 2021

2 mins read

Squire, The Black Owned Barbershop App is Now Valued At $250 Million Dollars

In June, we reported that Squire, a Black owned barbershop app and management platform, raised $34 million. On Wednesday, they announced another raise of $59 million in a round led by Iconiq Capital.

With the new financing, Squire has almost tripled its valuation, up from $85 million in June to $250 million today. They plan on using most of the capital to hire new sales and marketing professionals.

According to a LinkedIn post from co-founder, Songe LaRon, they are looking for a VP of marketing to “build out our marketing department and help us continue to fuel our rapid growth.” (Shoot your shot, marketing folks!)

The app, which was first developed to help customers book appointments, has evolved and added features such as payroll management, inventory tracking, and automatic rent collection for the barbers leasing chairs.

Squire has also helped barbershops navigate COVID-related restrictions by allowing customers to book and pay for appointments using its mobile app and by creating a virtual waiting room, which lets patrons wait outside or in their cars and enter only when they receive an automatic notification that their barber is ready for them.

According to Tech Crunch, Squire’s revenue went from zero in March, when all barbershops closed, to between $10 million to $20 million in ARR just 10 months later. The growth indicates how the next wave of barbershops will be built atop digital technology, instead of offline processes.

Tony O. Lawson

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Published on June 10, 2020

3 mins read

Squire, A Black Owned Barbershop Scheduling App, Raises $34 Million

Squire is a business management platform for barbershops. This software has the capability to serve independent professionals, stand-alone locations, and multi-location franchises, with tools such as Point of Sale, Scheduling, Payroll, CRM, and a host of other features.

The company just announced a Series B round that includes $27 million in equity financing and $7 million in debt financing, bringing the total raised to $46.2 million for the tech startup. This investment round aims to assist the growing company as it adds financial services to its already functional digital platform.

Squire provides barbers and shop owners with the ability to operate their businesses with cashless and contactless pay transactions, thereby streamlining service interaction and helping them earn and retain loyal clientèle as a result.

“Barbershops have been forced to modernize overnight, where scheduling and digital payments have become imperative to their operations and livelihood. And thankfully for shop owners, they have Squire to enable their expedited digital transition,” says Reid Christian, General Partner at CRV. “From an investment perspective, backing Dave and Songe with their unique perspective on the industry, coupled with the underlying structural shift in how consumers expect to interact with businesses, made this a unique opportunity to revolutionize an entire market.”

squire

With new regulations regarding social distancing practices and mandatory appointments amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Squire’s technology will continue to perform, and help shop owner’s organizational structure, with the goal of assisting them in reclaiming some of their losses during the global crises and increasing their overall revenue afterward.

“Small businesses are hurting right now. Fortunately, barbershops are well-positioned to thrive in an economic downturn since people will always need haircuts,” says Songe LaRon, co-founder, and CEO of Squire. “We’re focused on providing the payment infrastructure and financial services that will help barbershops reopen successfully and excel post-COVID. This investment will help us scale and execute on our goal of becoming the industry standard for barbershops.”

“Our goal has always been to put our customers first and be a resource in times of need,” says Dave Salvant, co-founder, and President.

Funds from this round will also be utilized to assist and educate barbershops; equipping them with the necessary tools to function in a post-pandemic society while providing training and access to digital practices that will aid them in operating a seamless business.

-Tony O. Lawson

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