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Charlotte, NC

Expanding a stationery and gift brand by investing in marketing, wholesale outreach, and inventory to meet growing retail demand.

• Strong revenue base: Over $200K in recent revenue supports proven market traction.
• Creative leadership: Founder is a designer and entrepreneur with brand-building experience.
• Strategic fund use: Focused on marketing, outsourcing, and new inventory.
• Retail growth plan: Currently in 115 stores with goals to scale to 500–1,000.
• Relatable product appeal: Designed for Millennial and Gen Z consumers with a pop culture lens.

MangoIllustrated is raising funds to expand its playful and pop culture-driven stationery brand, with the goal of enhancing operations, refining marketing, and scaling product offerings. The business has built a strong foundation with over $200,000 in revenue across 2023 and 2024, offering hand-illustrated stickers, pens, notepads, greeting cards, and small accessories. The brand resonates particularly with Millennial and Gen Z women through its witty, relatable designs and thoughtful product curation. Now, MangoIllustrated aims to streamline and grow its product line to better reflect current consumer trends and appeal to a broader retail audience.

Funds from this raise will be allocated toward key areas that support growth: marketing efforts including copywriting and digital ads, hiring professional services to optimize the e-commerce website and SEO, onboarding a virtual assistant to expand wholesale outreach, and investing in new inventory with updated and best-selling product designs. This funding will help the company refine its presence across retail and digital channels while keeping operations nimble and responsive. MangoIllustrated currently sells through 115 stores and intends to grow that footprint significantly in the next three years. The investment supports a woman-owned creative venture that merges artistic storytelling with humor and relatability, offering everyday joy in the form of simple, shareable products.

Company Info

MangoIllustrated designs and sells hand-illustrated stationery and gift items inspired by pop culture and everyday joy.

MangoIllustrated is a Charlotte-based stationery and gift brand that creates playfully profound products aimed at Millennial and Gen Z women. The collection includes stickers, pens, notepads, greeting cards, and small accessories, all designed with a blend of quirky charm, humor, and pop culture references. Each item is hand-illustrated and intended to bring joy and self-expression to everyday life, whether through gifting, organization, or a personal pick-me-up. The brand emphasizes relatability and creativity, aiming to turn simple moments into celebrations.

Founded by Katherine Valentine, MangoIllustrated began as a creative outlet during a period of burnout and quickly evolved into a full-time business with over $200,000 in revenue in 2023 and 2024. The brand has been featured in national media and is currently carried by around 115 retail stores, with plans to expand to 500–1000 stores and potentially hire full-time staff within three years. The product line is being refined to focus on high-performing designs and categories, with future growth supported by strategic investments in inventory, marketing, and operational support.