Lure Life Inc. (“Lure”), a luxury, joy-producing CBD brand has raised $750,000 in a Seed round of funding supported by a diverse group of investors in the beauty, finance and the consumer-packaged goods sectors. The funding will allow the brand to accelerate market expansion, company growth, marketing, and product development of the meticulously designed line.
The investors of this landmark raise were composed of over 50 percent women and is of further note since the brand is majority Black-owned and signifies triumph over the clear racial inequities in ownership in the cannabis business. Although funding for Black entrepreneurs has reached an all-time high in the past five years, it still represents just 1.2 percent of the record $147 billion in venture capital invested in the U.S.
“Lure is led by extremely talented founders with an aligned vision to move past the notion of singular need states for CBD. They are answering the call for CBD to be integrated into an overall daily beauty routine and to help shape the conversation around the expanded benefits for women’s health. It is really an honor to be invested in this rising brand,” says investor and Reel Founder, Derin Oyekan.
Sitting at the nexus of wellness and beauty, the brand touts hard working modern essentials intended to be integrated into a daily routine. In creating Lure, founders Kara Kelly, Monica Reese, and Summer Rice, set out to create products that could earn a spot on the discerning consumer’s nightstand. In terms of design aesthetic, the brand focused on creating packaging whose sophistication and beauty reflects the organic curated ingredients inside their products. The founders uncovered a lot of common ground around their experiences with a range of women’s health needs that weren’t being specifically addressed including menopause, sexual wellness, interrupted sleep, and pain points. The brand aims to seize this opportunity, speaking to the highly overlooked 40 plus market with more intention in addition to both men and women of all ages.
“Representing diversity in a newly legalized area is very important to us. African Americans have been heavily impacted by laws against cannabis and there’s still a very small number of BIPOC and Black owned luxury CBD brands,” says Co-Founder Kara Kelly. “Lure is bringing pride to a space that represented shame for so many years and we want to continue to be a part of changing the way our communities view CBD. We are honored to align ourselves with investors who share in our mission and are excited to see what this next chapter holds for us and our community.”
