1/10/20 - West Elm Forms Partnership With Plant Startup Bloomscape

From the Simplr studios in San Francisco, this is your daily briefing.  

Introduction

This is Today in Five, for today, Friday, January 10th. Here are today’s headlines in digital disruption.

Bloomscapes has formed a partnership with West Elm, marking its first partnership with a major retailer. According to a company press release, Bloomscape products will be available on West Elm’s U.S. website.  

First, here are the latest headlines.

Forever 21 Relaunching International Online Store

Forever 21 is relaunching its international online store in partnership with e-commerce platform, Global-e. The fashion retailer filed for bankruptcy in September, saying at the time it would close as many as 178 U.S. stores, along with most of its international stores in Europe and Asia in order to refocus on its U.S. and Latin American businesses. In a statement, Forever 21 President said the retailer has seen ongoing demand from customers in regions where it plans to exit. He went on to say, “E-commerce forms a large chunk of the profitable core of our operations and as part of our new global strategy, Forever 21 will leverage Global-e’s technology to offer international customers an outstanding online experience.“  

Mega-mall Defying Odds

Many people were skeptical about the long-awaited American Dream mega-mall in New Jersey opening this spring, but the mall seems to have defied the physical retail odds. Developers have leased almost 90 percent of the mall’s available 3.3 million square feet, a figure which rises to nearly 100 percent when leases under negotiation are included, according to a filing. All retail anchor stores have been spoken for, which is critical for malls since those locations are typically key in driving foot traffic. According to Bloomberg Intelligence, fewer than half of U.S. malls are expected to survive ongoing store closings, but American Dream has said it can beat the odds because of its attractions, including a Nickelodeon Universe park, an ice skating rink, and a ski slope, and its accessibility to New York City.  

Sweetgreen Looking Beyond Salad

Salad chain Sweetgreen wants to move beyond salads. The company recently opened its new 3.0 concept store in New York City and plans to double its store count in the next three years. The company has raised $350 million dollars in private capital, bringing its valuation to $1.6 billion dollars, which makes it the only restaurant unicorn. Sweetgreen currently operations 103 locations. While its 3.0 store received some positive feedback, other customers described their experience as confusing because of unclear pricing signage, too much merchandise, and long wait times. Mistakes are inevitable at the beginning of any venture, but Sweetgreen needs to beef-up its technological and operational capabilities if it wants to be known and valued as a tech company.  

West Elm Forms Partnership With Plant Startup Bloomscape

Direct-to-consumer plant company, Bloomscape, announced on Wednesday it formed a partnership with West Elm. The DTC brand said this marks its first partnership with a major retailer. According to a company press release, Bloomscape products will be available for purchase on West Elm’s U.S. website. The partnership follows a Series A funding round in 2019 in which the company raised $7.5 million dollars. The company has raised $9.2 million dollars to date, according to Crunchbase.  

Bloomscape’s partnership with West Elm also underscores a growing trend, especially in the home goods segment. As the market gets more saturated, brands are being forced to expand outside of their initial product categories. Mattress brand, Casper, expanded into the electronics and drug categories in 2019 with the launch of a smart nightlight and CBD gummies. Bedding brand, Brooklinen, launched its own online marketplace called Spaces in October, which invites brand partners to sell on the platform.

West Elm has also formed a variety of partnerships with brands in the past from furniture startup, Floyd, to smart home electronics company, Nest. For West Elm, the collaborations provide a relatively low-risk way of expanding and experimenting with different products and categories without having to develop the products in-house. In a statement about their partnership with Bloomscape., West Elm’s director of partnerships said, “Together, we can better serve our customers as they journey into designing and completing their homes.”

Plants could prove to be a lucrative category to expand into. Along with Bloomscape, other startups like Urban Stems and The Sill have entered the space. According to National Gardening Association date cited by Bloomscape, houseplant sales have increased some 50 percent to $1.7 billion dollars in the past three years.    

Closing

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