Week in review: Betterment raises $100M, Rent the Runway rolls out everyday clothing rentals and more

Betterment raises a $100M round

Despite a turbulent market and dwindling investor appetite for stakes in private startups, the robo-adviser firm 

 has received $100 million from venture capital investors, pushing its valuation to $700 million, nearly double its value this time last year. The Swedish investment firm Kinnevik led the investment round, which also included the previous investors — Bessemer Venture Partners, Menlo Ventures, Anthemis Group and Francisco Partners. [The New York Times]

 

Ringly launches a new line of smart bracelets 

Wearable tech company,

, released a new line called Aries, which offers a collection of elegant and sleek bracelets that sync up to your smartphone via Bluetooth. The bracelets work, discreetly, to alert viewers of calls, messages and social media notifications from their phone using a customizable vibration pattern. The new accessory also acts as a step tracker, taking on major places such as Fitbit and Jawbone. [Built In NYC]

 

Blue Apron cooks up plan for bigger office

, the rapidly-growing meal-delivery service that achieved unicorn status last year, is scoping out the city for new digs of up to 100,000 square feet. The three-year-old startup, which delivers recipes and pre-measured ingredients to customers, completed a $135 million Series D round of fundraising in June to catapult it to a $2 billion valuation. Currently, the company is headquartered out of a 10,000 square foot office in Soho. [The Real Deal Magazine]

 

On-demand massage startup stretches beyond NYC with new Series A

Zeel Networks Inc., an on-demand massage provider, raised $10 million of a $12 million Series A round this week. The company, based on the fringe of Union Square, has raised $15 million to date. Emil Capital Partners led the round, with participation from Slow Ventures, Partech Ventures, New Atlantic Ventures and Spafinder. [New York Business Journal]

 

Rent the Runway rolls out service so customers can rent everyday clothing

 unveiled a subscription service called Unlimited that lets women rent three articles of clothing at a time for $139 a month. The goal, according to CEO Jennifer Hyman, is to convince working women that it makes more sense to spend $1,700 a year on a rotating closet of leased clothing rather than plug the gaps in a wardrobe with purchases from fast-fashion brands that won’t last. [Recode]

 

Scentbird scores a $2.8 million round

, the “Netflix for fragrances,” announced it raised a $2.8 million round of funding. Investors included Eclipse Ventures, Vaizra Investments, Ludlow Ventures, FundersClub, Scrum Ventures, SGH Capital, Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian Y Combinator partner Michael Seibel, Parse and Scribd founder Tikhon Bernstam, and Casper CEO and cofounder Philip Krim. The company plans to use the new capital to expand its leadership and operations team and ramp up its marketing efforts. [Built In NYC]

 

Cinch raises $1.4 million round to help small businesses get loans

Cinch was founded in 2014 with a mission to empower small businesses by tapping into their customers’ future purchases. This week, the company announced that it raised a $1.4 million round, led by Lool Ventures, Entree Capital and iAngels. [Built In NYC]

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