Consumer tech in 2023

Hey, small spender

Last updated: 19 Oct 2023

Market 101

2023 is not the year of the consumer. Spending on non-essentials has fallen over the last six quarters in Europe, as we’ve all grappled with a swath of bills and sky-high inflation. And it’s little surprise that consumer VC funds are cutting back too — they’re not taking the same volume of bets they were during the boom days of 2021. Deal activity in the sector this year is at a quarter of its 2021 peak, as VCs flock to sectors not as battered by the slowdown, including shifting focus to startups that cater for businesses (or B2B).

There have been some big consumer-focused (B2C) startup casualties this year. Dutch startup VanMoof, which had raised close to $200m in funding from investors including Balderton and Felix Capital, was declared bankrupt in July. Several of the extremely well-capitalised speedy grocery startups have sold up and shed thousands of jobs.

On the other hand, there are still some consumer themes attracting big bucks. Take climate tech: startups working on energy transition are not wanting for VC cheques this year, with €3.9bn going to B2C climate startups — the ones, for example, that sell solar panels and heat pumps to homes — so far this year. Then there’s the resilience of the pet tech sector. While there have been just a little over 20 deals in this area in 2023, some megarounds have caught our attention. Two companies — UK dog food subscription startup Butternut Box and French insect feed company Ÿnsect — have raised a cumulative €490m this year.

Then there’s the online-only, direct-to-consumer (or D2C) segment, which is facing severe strain in 2023. Customer acquisition costs have risen — Facebook and Instagram ads are increasingly expensive — and VCs are suddenly dead scared of high cash burn prospects. Scaling with this business model has always been a challenge: as product differentiation gets harder with new competitors entering the field, more brands are forced to partner with big department stores — a stark shift from their original vision.

In sum, the slowdown has put a stop to big splurges, and indeed, many VCs — the recovering shopaholics of the boom years — find themselves bargain hunting further afield.

Early stage market map

Key facts

$2.33

raised by B2B startups for every dollar raised by consumer startups in 20231

8.5%

growth rate (i.e. CAGR) for funding into consumer startups over the last four years2

18%

of Europe’s tech unicorns in 2022 had a B2C focus3

Startups tracked by Sifted

Sifted take

Not a rosy outlook for consumer tech. With inflation seriously crimping consumer spend, the reduced revenue is having a direct impact on valuations and multiples, which will surely lead to unhappy fund LPs, as GPs take longer to return their money. But it’s still worth considering whether some of the fabled “recession-proof” consumer buckets — is pet tech one of these? — can cushion some of the drop. One segment that’s likely to keep doing well is B2C climate tech, as the clamour to tackle carbon emissions grows.

Rising stars

Clear

Online marketplace

Total funding

€800k

London, United Kingdom
2021

Launched by a Y combinator alumna, Clear is a social commerce app for skincare backed by Amino Capital, Pioneer Fund, Stonks and Misfit Venture Partners.

Round

Pre-seed

Valuation

Undisclosed


Date

2021

Size

€800k

Onego Bio

Alternative protein produced

Animal-free egg white producer

Total funding

€14.5m

Helsinki, Finland
2022

Uses precision fermentation to produce animal-free egg white and other protein sources.

Round

Seed

Valuation

Undisclosed


Date

2022

Size

€4.5m

inStreamly

Monetisation & sponsorships

Total funding

€2.9m

Warsaw, Poland
2019

It offers a metaverse-based advertising platform for streamers with smaller audiences.

Round

Seed

Valuation

Undisclosed


Date

2021

Size

€1.6m

Astrid

Ed Tech

Total funding

€5.5m

Stockholm, Sweden
2020

Offers an hybrid B2C-B2B approach to coaching for customer-facing teams.

Round

Seed

Valuation

Undisclosed


Date

2021

Size

€4m

Early stage startups to watch

.lumen

Cluj-Napoca, Romania
2020
Grant

6m

2.2m

-

2WATCH

Naples, Italy
2020
Angel

1.3m

850k

-

900.care

Paris, France
2019
Seed

10m

10m

-

99math

Tallinn, Estonia
2018
Seed

1.4m

910k

-

AGORA

London, United Kingdom
2020
Seed

6m

6m

-

Algor Lab Srl

Turin, Italy
2021
Pre-seed

250k

180k

1.1m

Aline - Learn Better

Stockholm, Sweden
2020
Pre-seed

350k

50k

2m

ALPA Kids

Tallinn, Estonia
2018
Pre-seed

270k

220k

-

Alvar Pet

Helsinki, Finland
2020
Seed

3.5m

2m

-

Animal Alternative Technologies (AAT)

Cambridge, United Kingdom
2020
Seed

3.4m

3.2m

-

Animalytics GmbH

Hamburg, Germany
2020
Bootstrapped

210k

210k

3m

Animoscope

Nevers, France
2019
Pre-seed

500k

250k

2.3m

ARuVR

London, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

3.7m

2.7m

-

Astrid

Stockholm, Sweden
2020
Seed

5.5m

4m

-

Atypical Cosmetics Ltd

Glasgow, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

276k

156k

1m

Aumio

Berlin, Germany
2020
Seed

3.7m

3.1m

-

Barkibu

Coruña, Spain
2015
Seed

9.1m

4.8m

26.8m

BeautyQlick AB

Stockholm, Sweden
2021
Angel

38k

38k

733k

Beducated

Munich, Germany
2019
Seed

-

400k

6.2m

bina

Berlin, Germany
2021
Pre-seed

1.3m

1.3m

-

Biokind

London, United Kingdom
2018
Bootstrapped

500k

500k

-

BionIT Labs

Lecce, Italy
2018
Seed

7m

3.5m

-

Bling

Berlin, Germany
2021
Pre-seed

2.5m

1.8m

-

Blue Farm

Berlin, Germany
2021
Seed

5m

3m

-

Blueheart

London, United Kingdom
2019
Seed

1.3m

1.2m

7.2m

Bluu Seafood

Berlin, Germany
2020
Seed

7m

-

-

Bother

London, United Kingdom
2020
Seed

13.2m

5.3m

-

Breeze

Rotterdam, Netherlands
2019
Angel

550k

300k

-

Bundleboon

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2018
Seed

14m

900k

-

buya

Hamburg, Germany
2020
Seed

1.8m

1.8m

-

Campanyon

Oslo, Norway
2021
Pre-seed

2m

1.5m

-

Camperguru

Lulec, Czech Republic
2021
Angel

80k

40k

-

Capybara Technologies GmbH

Berlin, Germany
2021
Pre-seed

300k

300k

-

Chatterbox

London, United Kingdom
2016
Pre-seed

3m

1.8m

-

Classlist

Oxford, United Kingdom
2016
Seed

4m

850k

-

Clear

London, United Kingdom
2021
Pre-seed

800k

800k

14m

Cocuus System Iberica

Cizur Menor, Spain
2017
Seed

2.5m

2.5m

18m

Collar

London, United Kingdom
2021
Bootstrapped

50k

50k

-

Cooper Pet Care

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2021
Seed

900k

800k

-

Coupleness

Saltsjöbaden, Sweden
2020
Seed

1.1m

900k

-

Cybershoes GmbH

Vienna, Austria
2018
Seed

2.9m

100k

1.4m

Dalma

Paris, France
2021
Seed

2m

2m

-

Dgree Education Gmbh

Essen, Germany
2019
Grant

100k

100k

-

Doctrio

Paris, France
2021
Seed

3m

3m

15m

Doggies in Town

Málaga, Spain
2021
Pre-seed

75k

75k

775k

Dogo

Berlin, Germany
2017
Seed

3.8m

2.9m

-

EarlyGame

Munich, Germany
2019
Seed

2m

500k

9.9m

Eatvel

Paris, France
2021
Bootstrapped

10k

-

-

edyoucated

Münster, Germany
2019
Seed

2.5m

2.1m

-

Emile Education

Bolton, United Kingdom
2017
Seed

750k

450k

1.5m

Emjoy

Barcelona, Spain
2020
Seed

3.5m

2.5m

12.5m

Endpoint Esports

Sheffield, United Kingdom
2016
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

ESGA s.r.o.

Praha, Czech Republic
2018
Angel

100k

40k

1m

Feels

Paris, France
2019
Seed

3.6m

2.5m

15m

Ferly

London, United Kingdom
2019
Pre-seed

-

-

-

Framework

London, United Kingdom
2021
Seed

1.8m

1.5m

7.5m

Freedome

Milan, Italy
2019
Seed

1m

600k

-

Gallinée

London, United Kingdom
2016
Angel

2m

500k

-

GamerPay

Copenhagen, Denmark
2021
Seed

2.8m

800k

-

Gameye

Rotterdam, Netherlands
2017
Seed

4.1m

2.2m

-

Gamifly

Paris, France
2016
Pre-seed

500k

400k

-

GerneOhne

Munich, Germany
2021
Angel

200k

150k

-

Glambook

Berlin, Germany
2020
Pre-seed

500k

500k

3.5m

Goals

Stockholm, Sweden
2021
Seed

18m

13.6m

-

GoodCourse

London, United Kingdom
2021
Pre-seed

700k

700k

3.5m

Greentech Innovators AS

Bergen, Norway
2018
Seed

1.5m

700k

6m

Grocemania Limited

Kingston, United Kingdom
2017
Seed

330k

200k

2.4m

Grovy Tech GmbH

Frankfurt am Main, Germany
2021
Seed

3m

3m

30.5m

Guide Education

Lincolnshire, United Kingdom
2016
Seed

8.5m

7.5m

37.5m

HackMotion

Riga, Latvia
2016
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

Happy Ocean Foods GmbH

Munich, Germany
2020
Pre-seed

1.3m

500k

-

Hello Mentor

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2020
Pre-seed

125k

125k

-

Heylama

Berlin, Germany
2021
Angel

100k

100k

1m

Hitmarker

Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

780k

588k

6.2m

HolidayFox

London, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

1.6m

1.4m

-

hotelbreak

Palma, Spain
2019
Seed

98k

535k

-

IDUN Technologies

Zürich, Switzerland
2017
Seed

5m

2m

-

imagi

Stockholm, Sweden
2020
Angel

1.1m

585k

-

Innocent Meat

Rostock, Germany
2017
Seed

180k

180k

-

inStreamly

Warsaw, Poland
2019
Seed

3m

1.6m

-

JetCamp

Delft, Netherlands
2019
Pre-seed

600k

400k

-

Jigsaw

Manchester, United Kingdom
2019
Seed

5m

3.2m

9m

Joonze

Blaricum, Netherlands
2021
Bootstrapped

250k

250k

-

Journee

London, United Kingdom
2019
Seed

2.5m

2.1m

-

JULIENNE BRUNO

London, United Kingdom
2020
Seed

6.9m

5.8m

-

Justlearn

Haderslev, Denmark
2017
Pre-seed

108k

108k

1.1m

Kaikoo

Málaga, Spain
2020
Seed

800k

370k

-

Kaizen Languages

London, United Kingdom
2018
Pre-seed

1.7m

1.2m

5m

Kard

Paris, France
2019
Seed

11m

4m

-

Karma Kebab

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2020
Pre-seed

1.4m

1m

5.5m

Kazidomi

Bruxelles, Belgium
2016
Seed

7m

5m

-

Kide Science

Helsinki, Finland
2017
Seed

3.2m

1m

-

Kidolog

Ankara, Turkey
2021
Pre-seed

55k

30k

1.2m

KIMO

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2018
Seed

4.3m

3m

23m

Klassroom

Paris, France
2016
Seed

4m

2.7m

-

Lambus

Osnabrück, Germany
2019
Seed

1.1m

800k

-

Leagues.gg

Søborg, Denmark
2017
Grant

672k

200k

-

Leetify

Stockholm, Sweden
2019
Pre-seed

900k

900k

4.5m

Legendary Play

Berlin, Germany
2017
Seed

5m

3.8m

-

Libre foods

Barcelona, Spain
2020
Seed

2.2m

2.2m

-

Lingumi

London, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

6.4m

3.5m

21.5m

Live the World

Antwerp, Belgium
2020
Pre-seed

450k

150k

-

LocalBini

St. Gallen, Switzerland
2020
Seed

2m

600k

-

Localie

Rotterdam, Netherlands
2018
Angel

285k

5k

1.8m

Lovely Day Foods (Makers of Perfeggt)

Berlin, Germany
2021
Seed

-

-

-

Lulla Care, formely Lullaai: Baby Sleep App

Madrid, Spain
2018
Pre-seed

1.3m

450k

4.2m

Lymphatica Medtech

Lausanne, Switzerland
2017
Seed

4.8m

1.3m

-

Macai

Milan, Italy
2021
Pre-seed

2.6m

2.6m

-

Magikbee

Braga, Portugal
2015
Pre-seed

350k

200k

3m

Mamamade

London, United Kingdom
2020
Seed

2m

1.6m

9m

mammaly

Cologne, Germany
2020
Seed

3m

3m

-

Memby

Vilnius, Lithuania
2020
Seed

910k

910k

-

Mixe.store

Paris, France
2020
Pre-seed

-

-

-

Mojo

London, United Kingdom
2019
Seed

3.3m

3.3m

-

Moomin Language Academy

Helsinki, Finland
2015
Seed

1.4m

700k

3.5m

Mr. Chadd

Groningen, Netherlands
2015
Seed

2m

920k

4.6m

Mushlabs

Hamburg, Germany
2018
Grant

24.1m

15m

35m

Mycorena

Göteborgs Stad, Sweden
2017
Grant

35.1m

-

-

MYHIXEL

Seville, Spain
2017
Seed

1.6m

1m

-

MyPet

Belfast, United Kingdom
2019
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

myTamarin

London, United Kingdom
2018
Angel

700k

200k

-

Neggst (Formerly Bettr Egg )

Berlin, Germany
2021
Seed

4.8m

2.8m

25m

Neroes

Lisbon, Portugal
2020
Pre-seed

280k

280k

3m

NomadX

Lisbon, Portugal
2017
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

NoMoMoo by Vegan Gourmet

Otopeni, Romania
2018
Bootstrapped

10k

30k

150k

Nosso

London, United Kingdom
2022
Pre-seed

2.5m

2.5m

-

Not In The Guidebooks

Elstree, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

600k

200k

-

NOVAMEAT

Barcelona, Spain
2018
Seed

8m

5.3m

-

Nowanda

Istanbul, Turkey
2020
Seed

170k

3m

-

Oja

London, United Kingdom
2021
Seed

3m

2.8m

-

OLALA! (ex Seafood Reboot)

Paris, France
2021
Pre-seed

4m

4m

-

OLIVER

Barcelona, Spain
2019
Seed

1.5m

700k

-

One Third Stories

London, United Kingdom
2015
Seed

700k

370k

3.1m

Onego Bio

Helsinki, Finland
2022
Seed

14.5m

4.5m

-

Onoco

London, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

517k

390k

2.9m

Oodee Ltd

London, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

815k

815k

2.5m

Paired

London, United Kingdom
2020
Seed

4.4m

3.5m

-

Pam Learning

Barcelona, Spain
2021
Angel

425k

242k

1.7m

Permano

Milan, Italy
2020
Pre-seed

400k

250k

2.3m

Petbnb.nl

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2016
Angel

200k

200k

-

Petgood

Stockholms kommun, Sweden
2020
Seed

-

2.5m

-

Petty Well

Paris, France
2019
Pre-seed

700k

400k

1.7m

Picsmart

Stockholm, Sweden
2019
Seed

2.5m

1.8m

-

PlayerData

Edinburgh, United Kingdom
2017
Seed

5.2m

1.2m

-

Pleasy Play

Braga, Portugal
2019
Pre-seed

400k

400k

1.8m

PowerZ

Paris, France
2020
Seed

10m

7m

30m

Prevayl

Manchester, United Kingdom
2019
Seed

9m

9m

-

Puissante

Aix en Provence, France
2021
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

Questo

Bucharest, Romania
2017
Seed

2.1m

1.3m

-

Quicksave Interactive

Helsinki, Finland
2017
Seed

1.7m

1.3m

5m

Quomi

Milan, Italy
2016
Seed

1.5m

400k

5m

Raus

Berlin, Germany
2021
Pre-seed

3.2m

2.2m

-

Rebel Meat KIDS

Vienna, Austria
2019
Seed

2m

500k

5m

Relate

Stockholm, Sweden
2018
Angel

2m

800k

-

Renude

London, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

750k

450k

-

Revo Foods

Vienna, Austria
2020
Seed

1.5m

1.5m

-

RISE

Brussels, Belgium
2021
Seed

2.2m

1.6m

-

Sainaptic Limited

London, United Kingdom
2022
Pre-seed

598k

598k

-

Save All

London, United Kingdom
2021
Pre-seed

600k

600k

3m

Scorpet

Paris, France
2020
Bootstrapped

-

15k

-

SheerME

Lisbon, Portugal
2020
Angel

800k

560k

5m

simpleclub

Grünwald, Germany
2015
Angel

3.3m

1.3m

-

Skiller Whale

London, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

3.3m

2.5m

13.3m

SmartGuide

Prague, Czech Republic
2018
Seed

1.1m

800k

10m

Snowball.gg

Lyon, France
2019
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

So Syncd

London, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

850k

850k

-

Solar Foods

Helsinki, Finland
2017
Grant

69.1m

34m

-

Sophia Technologies Ltd

London, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

672k

672k

370k

Soulpicks

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2019
Angel

1.6m

600k

-

SQIN

Berlin, Germany
2021
Pre-seed

800k

800k

-

Strive

London, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

150k

150k

-

StudyStream

London, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

1.9m

1.9m

-

Sumondo ApS

Copenhagen, Denmark
2015
Pre-seed

800k

200k

-

Synap

Leeds, United Kingdom
2015
Seed

510k

600k

3m

Tebrito

Orsa, Sweden
2016
Seed

4m

2.8m

-

TELEPORTRAVEL

Chisinau, Moldova
2020
Angel

8k

10k

720k

The Equal Food Co.

Lisbon, Portugal
2019
Bootstrapped

-

-

3m

The Sauce

London, United Kingdom
2020
Seed

2m

1.5m

-

Thursday

London, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

3m

3m

-

time to momo online bv

Rotterdam, Netherlands
2020
Angel

900k

320k

-

Time-travelling Milkman

Wageningen, Netherlands
2020
Pre-seed

1.5m

1m

-

Tiney

London, United Kingdom
2018
Seed

11m

2m

-

Tiny Library

Bussum, Netherlands
2020
Seed

1m

600k

-

Titan Academy

London, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

773k

745k

-

Tobi

Copenhagen, Denmark
2021
Pre-seed

400k

400k

2.3m

toddl.co

Barcelona, Spain
2021
Bootstrapped

50k

300k

1.3m

Tomojo

Paris, France
2017
Seed

3.5m

3m

-

Tomorrow’s Education

Berlin, Germany
2020
Seed

4.5m

3.4m

-

Toristy

Helsinki, Finland
2019
Angel

600k

90k

-

Touchy-Feely Tech

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2018
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

TRANSFERZ

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2020
Angel

5m

3.5m

-

Travel Creators

London, United Kingdom
2021
Pre-seed

400k

400k

-

TripLegend - Travel The World GmbH

Berlin, Germany
2020
Angel

350k

350k

-

Tripsider

San Francisco , United States
2021
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

Twire

Ljubljana, Slovenia
2019
Seed

350k

300k

-

TwogNation

Tallinn, Estonia
2017
Angel

150k

150k

1.4m

Typology

Paris, France
2019
Seed

8.8m

8.8m

-

Uni-Life

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2018
Seed

650k

280k

-

Vembla

Stockholm, Sweden
2020
Seed

2.4m

1.3m

-

Viatu

Zug, Switzerland
2020
Seed

850k

650k

-

Vibio

London, United Kingdom
2018
Bootstrapped

-

-

-

Vice Reversa

London, United Kingdom
2019
Seed

1.1m

1.1m

2.8m

Vignita

Oppaker, Norway
2017
Pre-seed

1.2m

600k

-

Virtual Internships

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
2018
Seed

2.4m

2.3m

11.7m

Volubus AB

Malmö, Sweden
2021
Seed

1.3m

800k

-

VoxiKids

Bucharest, Romania
2020
Angel

300k

100k

-

Wannalisn

Madrid, Spain
2019
Angel

500k

260k

3m

We Are Eves

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2018
Seed

5.5m

4m

-

Winc Academy

Amsterdam, Netherlands
2018
Seed

3m

2.7m

-

WNWN Food Labs

London, United Kingdom
2021
Seed

5.1m

5.1m

-

Woli

Athens, Greece
2021
Pre-seed

950k

700k

-

Wuplo

Berlin, Germany
2021
Seed

-

3.7m

-

Wyblo

Cuneo, Italy
2021
Angel

270k

270k

2.8m

Yababa

Berlin, Germany
2021
Seed

13.4m

12.5m

-

YUPWEGO

Lyon, France
2018
Seed

1.5m

800k

4.8m

Yuty (YUTYBAZAR Limited)

London, United Kingdom
2020
Pre-seed

580k

580k

-

Zero Gravity

London, United Kingdom
2020
Seed

4.7m

4.1m

-

Zoundream

Basel, Switzerland
2019
Seed

3.2m

2.1m

-

Europe’s success stories

Who early stage startups are up against

(Pre-)Seed

SeriesA

SeriesB

SeriesC

SeriesD+

IPO/Exit

French startup producing insects for both pet and human food Raised €160m in April 2023 — taking it to $439m in total — from Bpifrance, Robert Downey Jr. and Astanor Ventures

(Pre-)Seed

SeriesA

SeriesB

SeriesC

SeriesD+

IPO/Exit

Ava’s fertility tracking bracelet helps women get pregnant faster. US company FemTec Health announced its acquisition of the Zurich-based medtech in July 2022.

(Pre-)Seed

SeriesA

SeriesB

SeriesC

SeriesD+

IPO/Exit

Arguably Europe's most successful edtech, it was sold to Goldman Sachs for $1.72bn in July 2023.

Sources

Data sources

2 Sifted Proprietary data

Dealroom Data

Research reports

1 B2B in 2023 August 2023 | Sifted Pro

3 Europe's 2022 unicorns December 2022 | Sifted Pro

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