Andie Swim continues to grow with a little help from Jay-Z. 

The direct-to-consumer swimwear brand — which now includes lingerie and loungewear — recently raised $18.5 million in Series B funding, bringing the brand’s total investments to $27.5 million. The latest round was led by Marcy Venture Partners, the venture capital firm cofounded by Jay-Z, along with Jay Brown and Larry Marcus. 

“Marcy Venture Partners is a leading consumer fund and they really understand consumer brands,” Melanie Travis, founder and chief executive officer of Andie Swim, told WWD. “I’ve spoken with a lot of investors in my time building Andie. Marcy Venture Partners really got it and are excited about our vision. The conversations we’ve had have been so inspiring and motivating. I am beyond excited to be partnering with Marcy Venture Partners for the growth of Andie. I can’t imagine a better fund to be partnered with for building our future.” 

Marcus, who also serves as managing partner of Marcy, added that his firm was “drawn to Andie’s support of size inclusivity, mission of empowerment and overall brand values. Andie truly listens to what consumers want and delivers quality, sustainable products.” 

In addition to Jay-Z’s venture capital company, Andie counts Demi Moore, CityRock Ventures and Gaingels among its list of investors. With the added funds, the New York-based business plans to continue growing its brick-and-mortar channel; increase its international presence; add to the executive team, including a vice president of finance and a vice president of operations, and introduce new items to the assortment. 

“We’re in a great category and have all the dynamics that make Andie a good business,” Travis said. “And we’re profitable and growing quickly.” 

Andie Swim, which Travis founded in 2017, has sold more than 1 million swimsuits since its inception, with total revenues increasing more than 100 percent, between 2020 and 2021. That’s on top of 100 percent growth the previous year. In Australia — Andie’s largest international market — revenues surged 500 percent in 2021, year-over-year.

Travis wouldn’t comment on annual sales numbers, but in October 2020, she told WWD that annual revenues were “north of the $20 million mark.” That same month the company raised $6.5 million in a Series A funding round. 

The brand has also worked with celebrity influencers, including Moore and her daughters, created a capsule collection with actress Claire Holt and expanded into intimates in April 2021. 

While Andie has previously expressed interest in wholesale opportunities, Travis said in November that “wholesale has much longer lead times than d-to-c, so we’re still exploring, but we don’t have a timeline yet for [a] launch in wholesale.”  

Instead, the brand plans to grow its retail fleet with both pop-up and permanent locations, although Travis wouldn’t say which markets. 

Andie entered the brick-and-mortar business last month with a pop-up shop in West Palm Beach, Fla. The location will remain open through April 30.  

“It will be the first of many,” Travis said. “We are continuing to take an omnichannel approach, meeting customers where they are.

“There has never been a better time to invest in brick-and-mortar as a channel, given the evolving dynamics online and the appetite for customers to get out of their homes,” the CEO added, in a conversation with WWD last month. “When the weather warms up, we intend on rolling out [pop-up] stores across several of our key markets. I hope we learn a lot from this first store that we can apply to our future locations. The future of retail is in omnichannel. Brands who can bridge the online world and the offline world will find the most success.”

Travis said Canada continues to be a major growth opportunity for Andie, with Asia and Europe next on the horizon. Travis said Andie would consider opening brick-and-mortar locations outside of the U.S., “as it makes sense.”   

“We are planning brick-and-mortar in Australia in the midterm future,” she explained. “In general, the approach we’re taking is as we roll into new countries, we need to see what the market dynamics are and Andie will meet her where she is. It’s market-dependent, so we will launch wherever is right. There is no reason that Andie shouldn’t be a global brand. With the funding, we will be on our way to that.” 

Meanwhile, Andie continues to expand its product categories. On Tuesday, the brand launched loungewear. The four-piece collection, which includes T-shirts, tank tops, pants and shorts made from bamboo and recycled polyester, can be purchased on andieswim.com, or at the West Palm Beach location. Items range in price from $45 to $65 and come in sizes 0 to 26. 

Resort wear is coming in 2022. Andie also hopes to be fully sustainable by mid-2022. 

“We’re committed to continuing to be a source of comfort for women as we enter new categories,” Travis said. “This has been an extremely high-growth year for the brand and this funding will fuel our next stage of growth as we continue to bridge the gap between swim, intimates and loungewear, as well as hone our omnichannel retail strategy, meeting our customers wherever they are.”