- Museum of Ice Cream founders Maryellis Bunn and Manish Vora recently launched Figure8 and raised $40 million at a $200 million valuation
Maryellis Bunn and Manish Vora — the founders of Museum of Ice Cream — have recently launched Figure8. Figure8 is an experience-first development company that is now the parent company of Museum of Ice Cream. And Figure8 has just completed a first close of a $40 million Series A round at a $200 million valuation led by Elizabeth Street Ventures, Maywic Select Investment, and strategic investments from venture fund OCV Partners.
“We created Figure8 to chart the future of how Millennials and Gen Z will want to spend their time. Over the past 3 years building Museum of Ice Cream, we have learned so much from our guests and gained endless insight. Globalization and technology have made the world smaller, yet people are more lonely than ever,” said Bunn. “I want to inspire people around the world with what I call experiums, emotional and transformative moments and spaces for people to reconnect with themselves and those around them.”
Ever since Museum of Ice Cream’s conception in 2016, the interactive art exhibit with ice cream and candy themed exhibits became a cultural phenomenon and ignited an entire experiential industry. And the company welcomed over 1.5 million visitors to locations in Los Angeles, New York, Miami, and San Francisco. Plus the brand launched an ice cream line sold at Target and created high-profile partnerships with Platinum Card by American Express, a makeup collection with Sephora, and a kids clothing line at Target.
“Museum of Ice Cream receives an overwhelming amount of requests from companies asking us to design branded experiums for them,” added Vora. “Now we can answer this need and more. Figure8 will expand internationally, rolling out a new Museum of Ice Cream location each quarter while also launching new Figure8 brands and working on commissioned special projects.”
Elizabeth Street Ventures co-founder and partner William McClelland is joining the board of Figure8.
“Figure8 and Museum of Ice Cream are built on core tenets of imagination, connection, and creativity. These are things that are part of a shared human experience and so important to how we live and improve our daily lives,” added McClelland. “Elizabeth Street is incredibly excited to support this endeavor and bring memorable experiences to people around the world.”
Figure8 currently has a team of 35 people at its NYC headquarters and is growing its senior leadership for global expansion. For example, Andrew Lumsden is joining the company as SVP of Operations — who is bringing over 20 years of experience working with food, beverage, and hospitality brands including Zuma, The Ace Hotel, The Spotted Pig, Noho Hospitality, and Stephen Starr. And Peter Sun is joining the company as VP of Brand & Marketing with more than a decade of experience building global brands including P&G, Unilever, Hilton, LVMH, HSBC, Volvo, etc.
“Museum of Ice Cream has redefined the expectations and influence of experiences with explosive growth. Figure8’s team has a unique ability to tap into the mindset of today’s customers and will continue to revolutionize the industry it has helped create,” explained Maywic Select Investments chairman and managing partner Frederic Mayerson.
