Led by Melitas Ventures, with participation from Cult Capital and Rodeo GP, the round brings the body care brand’s total funding to $9 million since its 2021 launch. Hanni raised $3 million in a round led by Valedor Ventures in 2022, the year it entered Sephora. In November last year, it expanded to all the beauty specialty retailer’s locations in the United States.

“The name of the game with this raise is hyperfocus,” says Leslie Tessler, founder of Hanni and former marketing and communications manager at Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare. “There are so many shiny balls to get distracted by, but the thing we always have to remember is we’re a team of five and all of these balls require not only financial capital, but also capital from a human perspective. I think the best and the smartest thing we can do is stay focused where we are.”

According to Tessler, Hanni will be positive on an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) basis in the next six months. The brand’s sales are split relatively evenly between Sephora, direct-to-consumer distribution and Amazon. Tessler believes its $2 million funding round will set Hanni up for a strong series A funding round planned for next year.

Within Sephora, she says, “We haven’t even started scratching the surface. We just need more people to know who we are and try the products because we know, once they try them, they’ll come back and buy.”

Melitas Ventures’ founder and managing partner Alex Malamatinas says, “Hanni is taking an innovative approach to the body care space. Their formats are easy to use and efficacious. Hanni is building a beautiful brand that is distinctive, stands out and resonates with consumers.”

The check for Hanni comes from Melitas Ventures’ third fund established this year. Other investments from the beauty- and wellness-focused tranche include Jupiter, Veracity, Final Boss Sour and Harkin. Melitas’ portfolio across its three funds contains over 40 companies. Among them are food and beverage darlings Magic Spoon, Mud\Wtr and Kin Euphorics.

“Hanni is right at the sweet spot of where we invest,” says Malamatinas. “We are thematically and category-driven, and body care is an area we think is at the early stages of a new innovation cycle. There has been a lot of focus on the face that will continue, but, increasingly, consumers are caring more about the body.”

Along with Hanni, Gente, Luna Daily, Salt & Stone and Nécessaire are a few brands in the body care category that have scored investment. As of early this year, market research firm NielsenIQ estimates omnichannel body care sales in the U.S. climbed 6.7% year-over-year, with online sales rising 14.6%, outpacing skincare’s growth.

During a post-health scare “Eat, Pray, Love” moment, Tessler decamped from the U.S. to Argentina in a planned six-month trip she extended to over a decade. During her time in South America, she focused on self-care and consulting for Brazilian body care startups, which combined laid the groundwork for Hanni, which she launched in 2021 upon her return to the U.S.

Hanni premiered with a reimagined single-blade razor as its centerpiece. The product was at the brand’s core when it broke into Sephora and raised $3 million. However, the chic single-blade razor is cash-intensive to produce and a tougher sell than typical body care in a beauty-oriented retail environment.

“We raised a certain amount of money when we got the offer from Sephora reaching out to us so early on,” says Tessler. “I had no clue what I was doing. I raised money because it was easy at the time. We had all this momentum behind us, but, in all transparency, a lot of that cash was sucked up by working capital for the razors.”

Hanni pivoted to a body care focus in response to the economic reality of its razor and consumers’ welcoming response to its body care.  Today, the razor makes up 3% of the brand’s sales. While Hanni paused on new product development this year, it has three major body care launches planned for 2026. Its current bestseller is the $34 Splash Salve. Tessler describes it as a hair mask for the body.

“You use it when you’re about to hop out of the shower. You put it all over your body [and] rinse it under the water quickly,” she says. “You get out, pat dry, and you don’t need a drop of lotion.”

Click here to learn more about Dealmaker Summit happening June 8 & 9 in New York.