Birchbox was established in September 2010 by
Katia Beauchamp and
Hayley Barna, both graduates of
Harvard Business School. In October 2010, Birchbox's initial funding began with $1.4 million in seed funding from investors including First Round and Accel Partners. In April 2014, it raised $60 million in Series B funding, led by
Viking Global Investors, and saw participation from First Round Capital,
Accel Partners, Aspect Partners, and Consigliere Brand Capital. In July 2014, the company opened its first brick-and-mortar store in New York's Soho neighborhood. As of 2014, Birchbox was valued at $485 million. In October, it partnered with
Soldsie to launch its first
Instagram shop. The shop allows Instagram users interested in Birchbox products to purchase directly through Instagram by leaving a comment on a photo with the hashtag #birchboxcart. In 2015, Barna stepped down from the co-CEO role at the company and joined the
First Round Capital firm as a venture partner. In January 2016, the company cut 15% of its staff. Five months after raising $90 million, it had a minority stake acquired in October 2018 by
Walgreens, whose stores began offering its service. However, Birchbox cut 70% of its staff of 230 employees in January 2020. After being purchased by
start-up FemTec for $45 million in October 2021, the online subscription service was acquired in 2023 by Retention Brands. ==Business==