- Four online retail start-ups helmed mainly by millennials hit unicorn status (considered to be at least a $1 billion valuation mark) in 2019: Glossier, Rent the Runway, Casper, and Away.
- Their 20- and 30-something founders disrupted the beauty, fashion, sleep, and travel industries by spotting a gap in each.
- All the founders made social media a key part of their business strategy: It helped change the face of their respective industry, fuel business growth, and catered to a millennial demographic.
- They also exhibited a lot of drive and hustle while paying attention to the importance of design and their customers.
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2019 witnessed the rise of several online retail unicorns helmed mainly by millennials.
A "unicorn" is a startup with a valuation of at least $1 billion. Within just two weeks in March, three online retail startups hit the $1 billion valuation mark: Glossier, Rent the Runway, and Casper. Two months later, Away followed suit.
Despite coming from different paths, these four start-ups share similar success stories: They hail from mostly 20- and 30-something founders who set out to fill a gap they spotted in various industries. In 10 years or less, all the founders successfully disrupted their respective industries. They all leveraged the power of social media and word-of-mouth to fuel business growth and appeal to a millennial demographic.
They identified opportunities for disruption through diverse sources; devised engaging ways to keep their customers invested; raised and used VC funding carefully and strategically; and realized the importance of thoughtful, personalized design, according to Business Insider's Connie Chen.
Meet the young founders behind the billion-dollar companies changing beauty, fashion, sleep, and travel.