Meli Melo - a brand that is aspiring to be more!

It is not often that we get to brag about our clients, especially those that are specialists in their field and bring that unique string of design DNA to an ever-growing industry.

Meli Melo are on an innovative journey to raise £700,000, this allows the brand to fast forward their global growth and filter the investment into digital marketing, new product development and outdoor advertising. To find out more click on the ‘crowdcube’ page to see in their own words their proposal and investment information.

The foundations of their heritage and company history is inspiring and it goes to show the massive impact such dedication and soul can have on the success of a brand.

A little bit of history behind the name and orientation: “meli melo is a combination of designer Melissa Del Bono’s rich Italian and patriotic English Heritage, paired with the inspiration from her daily life. Named after Melissa herself, ‘Meli’ was the playful nickname given to her by friends and family whilst ‘meli melo’ means a mishmash of things.”

It is worth stressing that creating a brand that has a power house of knowledge behind it, can only result in world wide success. Melissa saw a gap in the market when she first brought it over to London for beautifully made products without the extortionate, wages gone already, kind of price tag.

To some the price may be too high, but it puts you in reach of treating yourself to a high-quality fashionable product, unlike the super expensive bags that do not match the quality or bank account allowance!

Melissa previously worked for Tanner Krolle, Asprey and the in-house PR teams at Harper’s Bazaar. The experience and connection were utilised to launch the label and has since become favourable with some little well-known names as Sienna Miller, Pippa Middleton, Poppy Delevingne and The Duchess of Cambridge.

That’s right, these are celebrities that are behind this brand because they love the style. Now, for the number lovers out there…

For those in the industry and who have already invested a huge amount of money and knowledge into the sector, the global bags and accessories market is £104 billion growing at 8.4% pa. In the UK alone, the market is valued at around £1.3 billion. Meli Melo with its strong hold of international customers, capitalises on both growing home and international markets. Over just 5 years for a new business, the revenue grew from £400,000 to £3.55 million.

I can already hear a few potential investors out there asking why Meli Melo needs a crowd funding campaign, it seems from the above they are doing fantastically already. But that is exactly the point, this brand started with an ambitious creator and they want to continue growing. They could keep going as they are but unfortunately making such high-quality products requires a huge amount of capital to make the products and hold it in stock. Meli Melo wants to jump from an independent brand to a globally known power house which requires a significant budget.

This ‘Crowdcube’ funding will give them the chance to reach out and be known amongst the global lifestyle brands. We can already see they have the product, interest and progression!

The funding they are looking for is £700,000, this allows the brand to fast forward their global growth and filter the investment into digital marketing, new product development and outdoor advertising. This excitingly includes launching a men’s sector in October and accelerating both direct to consumer and wholesale ambitions.

Whether you are an everyday investor, or you have multiple brands and businesses under your belt, you can invest as little as £10 to become a shareholder. This will give you access to exclusive rewards, discounts and benefits and an extensive amount more.

What we at cranberry panda admire the most, is they want their customers on board along with experienced investors so, the brand follows its beliefs that they are creating these products for the public!

Please see below a few more bullet points on their successes along with the crowd funding page for you to take your next step!

https://www.crowdcube.com/companies/meli-melo/pitches/lR5n6q

• Revenue has grown from £400k to £3.55m over 5 years
• Margins: 77% Retail, 69% E-commerce, 46% Wholesale
• 5 years' evidence of x4 return on digital marketing spend
• Strong Celebrity and Royal Family following; global press appeal

Who best to explain who they are and what they are working towards then those who live and breath for the brand:

Douglas Ker, CEO of meli melo said: “We have a strong brand with beautifully crafted handbags and accessories. I believe there are amazing opportunities for meli melo at home and abroad to grow significantly. We are joining a group of luxury businesses such as Mr & Mrs Smith, who currently have raised £2m via Crowdcube, in giving our customers a real piece of our brand and an opportunity to be involved in the exciting next chapter, as we look to ramp up marketing and distribution overseas and move meli melo into a global lifestyle brand.”

Melissa the Founder & Creative Director of meli melo said, “Involving the Crowd is so exciting, they are my customer, and it would be great to have them onboard as our investor, to come on a journey with us.”