A Lancaster startup that allows customers to customize and receive trial versions of engagement rings has raised a $3.85 million seed round.
Founded by U.S. Army veterans Andrew Wolgemuth and Brian Elliott, Wove lets users custom design an engagement ring and sends them a replica version for a trial run before committing to the real ring. The seed round was led by Austin-based Springdale Ventures and other participants included Outlander VC, Rarebreed Ventures, Context Ventures, veteran-focused investment fund PenFed Foundation.
The idea for Wove marries Wolgemuth's background. He comes from a family of jewelers and spent a lot of time on Jewelers' Row in Philadelphia. During his six years as an Army Ranger, including on his last tour in Afghanistan, word got around about his jewelry knowledge and others would seek out his advice on engagement rings.
Instead of ordering an actual engagement ring, which is a large monetary and sentimental investment, and having it sent to their base, Wolgemuth would instead connect his fellow rangers with his family's jewelry shop in Lancaster, Koser Jewelers. They would then create a replica of the ring from less expensive materials and send that version to Afghanistan.
That back and forth ended up becoming the earliest version of Wove, which officially launched its e-commerce platform last December and has grown five-fold since.
Wove will launch additional revenue channels in the coming months including next week's roll out of an e-commerce line of pre-designed rings for customers who don't want the fully customizable experience. Such rings will start at $1,000 and wedding bands will be slightly below that price.
Wolgemuth described the startup as "democratizing custom jewelry design." He said the ability to custom-design engagement rings is a luxury usually only afforded by the super wealthy and that he's hoping to make the practice accessible to more people.
A custom ring has a minimum price tag of $6,000 and can run as high as north of $50,000. But it costs just $5 for Wove to make a replica of even the most expensive rings thanks to its use of alloys and imitation diamonds. Once ordered, customers will receive a replica in about a week.
The real rings, on the other hand, are made by goldsmiths in Lancaster, with diamonds sourced from around the U.S. Wolgemuth said he's seen customers propose with the replica to determine if their partner likes it, but has also seen couples design rings together and keep the replica as a backup.
While Wove has been focused on engagement rings, the company will also roll out other lines of jewelry before the end of the year.
Wolgemuth projects that non-customizable engagement rings and jewelry lines will double business in the next six months.
"The way I see it is we're a cool mix of a tech and jewelry company," Wolgemuth said. "We're recreating a part of this centuries-old industry that hasn't transitioned much in the past 100 years."
