OWND, a Copenhagen-based curated platform for investing in Fashion NFTs, has secured $750K in a pre-Seed funding round led by Nordic VCs byFounders (also backed Cello) and Skyfall Ventures.
The funding will enable OWND to launch and grow its platform, allowing users to invest in digital collectibles using Apple Pay or a simple credit card.
OWND is expected to launch officially in April 2023.
“We want to empower the online-first generations to invest in something they know better than Wall Street: fashion. With OWND, we enable our users to go from consumers to co-owners of the brands they believe in,” says OWND’s second co-founder, Mads Lunau Liechti.
OWND is the first startup deal sourced by Steel DAO, a decentralized community that Bessemer launched in March last year.
Kipras Daujotas, a member of Steel DAO’s governance committee member, who helped identify the opportunity, is thrilled to have OWND is the first deal to receive funding via Bessemer through Steel DAO.
“Crypto has been too complicated to reach mass adoption, but OWND has found a sophisticated way to simplify the consumption of digital collectibles. The current downturn is the perfect time for this kind of investment, as the shake-out has eliminated the noise. Just like Uber, Airbnb, and other iconic companies emerged from the previous downturn, OWND is well-positioned for mainstream adoption on the way to the next growth cycle,” Daujotas says.
Curated platform for fashion NFTs
Founded by Anker Bach Ryhl and Mads Lunau Liechti in 2022, OWND curates fashion NFT from brands such as Nike, Adidas, and Gucci.
The platform will only display digital collectibles with real value, like access to physical items, exclusive drops, IRL events, and more.
“Investing should be easy. You shouldn’t have to sign up for three different platforms and be an expert on all things crypto just to get started. Many would like to invest in NFTs, but they haven’t leaped yet due to the technical complexity of blockchain technology. OWND makes it as easy to buy a Nike NFT as it is to buy a Nike sneaker,” says OWND’s co-founder, Anker Bach Ryhl.
OWND aims to remove the technical complexity of NFT investing by enabling users to invest with just a few clicks.
“The previous cycle gave us a glimpse of the potential of NFTs, but with limited and speculative use cases. We believe the next bull run in space will be driven by utility and culture. There’s a huge potential in fashion where NFTs will have cultural significance and become core parts of people’s digital and social identities. The internet native gen Z will mainly drive the adoption, and OWND is already deeply rooted in the space,” says Casper Bjarnason, byFounders.”
