Squared Circles: $40 Million Raised To Incubate Science-Based Brands

By Amit Chowdhry • Jun 10, 2024

Squared Circles, a consumer-focused venture studio incubating brands grounded in science, announced the closing of a $40 million Series A funding round led by L Catterton.

This funding follows L Catterton’s prior participation in the company’s Seed round, which had been led by investor Wildcat Capital Management, and Regeneration VC. With this new funding, Squared Circles plans to launch and scale at least five more health and wellness brands over the next three years.

Launched by Alexander Gilkes, Osman Khan and Lukas Derksen, Squared Circles is a venture incubator with a focus on creating science-backed consumer products in the food, beverage, and health and wellness spaces. And the founding team collectively has over 60 years of experience in building brands and has launched eight companies.

To date, Squared Circles has built and launched 3 companies: Magic Molecule, a skin health solution that recreates a compound naturally produced by the white blood cells — hypochlorous acid; Algae Cooking Club, a healthy oil and fats product derived from microalgae, disrupting the $50 billion edible oils and fat end market and co-founded by Eleven Madison’s Daniel Humm; and Freaks of Nature, a high performance skin microbiome brand designed for the 164 million outdoor enthusiasts in the U.S. alone, with Kelly Slater as Co-Founder.

Squared Circles licenses novel bioscience IP to deliver targeted product experiences and competitive moats and leverages a stage-gated playbook supported by generative AI to speed up innovation and improve efficiency.

KEY QUOTES:

“We’re thrilled to support Squared Circles as they create some of the most forward-thinking and innovative products that leverage science and AI to meet the needs of the consumers of tomorrow. Their targeted approach to consumables, expert grasp of consumer mindset and behavior, and seamless fusion of science with culture fill an important gap in the market. Squared Circles is set to lead the next wave of profitable, impactful innovation that benefits both people and the planet.”

  • Jon Owsley, Managing Partner of L Catterton’s Growth Fund

“We want to work with scientists to shape a future where consumer products benefit both individuals and the planet. We are excited to collaborate with leading consumer-focused investors such as L Catterton who not only share our long-term vision for creating transformational brands, and our dedication to ingenuity and sustainability, but also bring the extensive consumer expertise and deep operational knowledge that will help support our future endeavors.”

  • Osman Khan, Co-founder and CEO of Squared Circles