Fashion Playtes Sews Up $1.5M In First VC Funding

By Rodney H. Brown Source: Mass High Tech

Custom clothing design website maker Fashion Playtes Inc. reports it has closed on $1.5 million in a Series A financing led by New Atlantic Ventures and LaunchCapital, with a number of angel investors also participating in the round. The company, which runs www.fashionplaytes.com, landed the first cash in the financing in March, according to federal documents.

Officials at Salem-based Fashion Playtes say that the first round funds will be used to help the company expand its product line and customization options, further develop the social networking aspect of its website community and grow its customer base.

“We really want to make it more of a community so girls can share and collaborate,” said founder and CEO Sarah McIlroy. “We want to have a gallery — which we are working on right now — where girls can upload the clothing.”

New Atlantic‘s Scott Johnson and Bill McCullen of LaunchCapital have joined the Fashion Playtes board of directors.

On the Fashion Playtes website, users can design their own clothing items, then purchase their own designs. The social media aspect of the site comes in to play as users can collaborate on designs and share them, and Fashion Playtes will eventually incorporating game elements, officials say.

McIlroy said that Fashion Playtes has a number of partnerships in development to help it reach the target audience of online tween girls, but she declined to name any partners.

New Atlantic‘s Johnson said in a statement that the tween clothing market is valued at $11 billion per year. Fashion Playtes has recently moved into a closed beta period and plans to open up the beta in the fall. “We envision more of a hard launch in probably Q1 of 2010,” McIlroy said.

Nielsen Report: Teens More “Normal” Than You Think Regarding Media Usage

DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE!

It’s 2009: Do you know where your kids are?

They might be on the Internet, or gaming or texting… but they could also be be watching live TV, listening to the radio or reading a newspaper. At the annual What Teens Want conference in New York, The Nielsen Company presented How Teens Use Media, which argues once you look past the hype - American teens are not as alien in their media usage as you might expect. Sure, it might sound hip and trendy to suggest they’re too busy texting, Twittering or LOL-ing to be engaged with traditional media, but ultimately, the research proves otherwise.

“The media experience is broadening for all consumers, not just teens,” said Nic Covey, director of insights for The Nielsen Company. “Looking at our research across markets and media, we see that, contrary to popular assumption, teens are actually pretty normal in their usage, and more attentive than most give them credit for.”

The comprehensive report combines insights from Nielsen’s global resources in Television, internet, mobile, gaming, moviegoing, radio, newspaper and advertising research to debunk myths and provide the hard facts around how teens use media.

Key Takeaways

• Teens are NOT abandoning TV for new media: In fact, they watch more TV than ever, up 6% over the past five years in the U.S.
• Teens love the Internet … but spend far less time browsing than adults: Teens spend 11 hours and 32 minutes per month online. Far below the average of 29 hours and 15 minutes.
• Teens watch less online video than most adults, but the ads are highly engaging to them: Teens spend 35% less time watching online video than adults 25-34, but recall ads better when watching TV shows online than they do on television.
• Teens read newspapers, listen to the radio and even like advertising more than most: Teens who recall TV ads are 44% more likely to say they liked the ad.
• Teens play video games, but their tastes aren’t all for the blood-and-guts style games: Just two of their top five most-anticipated games since 2005 have been rated “Mature.”
• Teens’ favorite TV shows, top websites and genre preferences across media are mostly the same as their parents: For U.S. teens, American Idol was the top show in 2008, Google the top website and general dramas are a preferred TV genre for teens around the world.

For additional insights, download a free copy of How Teens Use Media

SOURCE: NIELSEN WIRE