Jeffrey Raider and Andy Katz-Mayfield stood on top of two wooden crates in the middle of a distribution facility in Eisfeld, Germany, and announced to 427 employees that their factory had been acquired by Harry's, a 10-month old startup from New York.
"We were speaking to them in English and it was being translated into German by the senior team," recalls Raider, who cofounded Harry's with Katz-Mayfield. "We weren’t sure of the translation. We just saw people nodding their heads."
That was back in January when Harry's, a startup that sells shaving products, surprised many by announcing that it had raised a massive $122.5 million in financing, largely to acquire a 93-year-old razor manufacturer in Germany called Feintechnik. Harry's later purchased a building across the street from the factory.
On Thursday, Harry's announced raising $75 million more in funding, led by Tiger Global, to expand its German factory operations and continue growing its razor business. The startup plans to invest in new equipment and additional staff at the facility with the goal of creating what Raider promises will be "the next generation of razor blades for the future."
Some of the equipment Harry's is looking at includes "custom designed German machinery," which Raider says "can take years to build and bring online." Says Raider, "we wanted to invest now."
In the months since the acquisition, the German operation has helped Harry's learn the value of precision and structure, according to Raider. The team at Harry's, meanwhile, has showed their German counterparts the startup's value of trying new things and "not being afraid to fail."
Raider, who previously cofounded Warby Parker, visits the German factory once every three months for about a week at a time. Katz-Mayfield, who is responsible for overseeing the factory, flies there once a month.