Soona offers real-time content from photo and video shoots to its e-commerce clients. (Courtesy Soona)
Online photo startup Soona is raising money with a new lens.
Instead of pouring millions into its pre-existing studios, co-founder and CEO Liz Giorgi said the Denver-based business will focus on its new artificial intelligence software. Her company has raised $3.1 million to do this — a round backed by repeat investors such as Union Square Ventures and Boulder’s Matchstick Ventures.
“AI development is very expensive, so we’re seeking additional investment to play offense at the moment,” Giorgi said.
Giorgi and Hayley Anderson founded Soona in 2019 to make the product-imaging business more efficient. The company took photos and videos to help companies market their products, aiming to offer a lower cost and faster turnaround.
Soona built a loyal customer base, but Giorgi said it takes a lot of time for the company and customers to go back and forth repeatedly to decide specific product shoot details. So, in April, Soona launched an AI tool.
It integrates with online retailers Amazon and Shopify to give product peddlers insights on consumer trends, competitors and branding. The tool suggests which products to prop up and how to improve underperforming listings. It also integrates with Canva to give advice on imaging, including everything from models to product placement and lighting.
It pulls from competitor’s data and overall consumer trends to inform its tips.
“It takes away a lot of that prioritizational stress,” Giorgi said. “It’s really nice to help customers get time and some of their sanity back.”
Customers can then have Soona enact those recommendations, either online with an AI editing studio, which is similar to an autonomous photoshop, or by outsourcing to a network of people that make unboxing, testimonial or action videos of the product.
Businesses can also go to one of Soona’s four studios — in Denver, Austin, Minneapolis and Los Angeles — for in-person shoots.
“AI needs to be a partner in the creative process and help us make decisions,” Giorgi said. “We’re not looking to replace anything, but we believe things can be done better, faster and cheaper by using AI.”
The tool is packaged in with Soona’s several subscriptions, which have monthly or yearly offerings ranging from $13 to $49 a month. Since launching in April, the AI tool has generated around $500,000 in revenue and grown exponentially, Giorgi said.
Given the initial promise, Soona looked to raise capital to bolster development. Giorgi said it takes around 5 percent to 10 percent of the business’ revenue to power the product.
Soona is also raising another $3 million to $4 million from new investors and expects to close that round in January, Giorgi said. The company is looking for new supporters who have a specific interest in driving down the cost of operating the tool. The data it collects is also something that has a lot of potential, Giorgi said.
“Soona is in a really privileged position of having a tremendous amount of first-party data about imaging and content,” she said. “It’s a pretty unique position to be in” when talking with potential funders, she added.
This raise brings their total to over $19 million, SEC filings show.
Soona has 25,000 customers, a number that has steadily grown by 5,000 in the last several years. The company also passed eight figures in annual revenue this year — a 40 percent increase from 2023. Giorgi said her company will be cash-flow positive in early 2025.
In November, the building at 1235 S. Broadway that houses Soona’s Denver studio and headquarters sold for $4.3 million. A group led by restauranter Julia Duncan-Roitman, who owns Joy Hill, a pizza joint in the building, bought it from Revesco Properties.
Soona offers real-time content from photo and video shoots to its e-commerce clients. (Courtesy Soona)
Online photo startup Soona is raising money with a new lens.
Instead of pouring millions into its pre-existing studios, co-founder and CEO Liz Giorgi said the Denver-based business will focus on its new artificial intelligence software. Her company has raised $3.1 million to do this — a round backed by repeat investors such as Union Square Ventures and Boulder’s Matchstick Ventures.
“AI development is very expensive, so we’re seeking additional investment to play offense at the moment,” Giorgi said.
Giorgi and Hayley Anderson founded Soona in 2019 to make the product-imaging business more efficient. The company took photos and videos to help companies market their products, aiming to offer a lower cost and faster turnaround.
Soona built a loyal customer base, but Giorgi said it takes a lot of time for the company and customers to go back and forth repeatedly to decide specific product shoot details. So, in April, Soona launched an AI tool.
It integrates with online retailers Amazon and Shopify to give product peddlers insights on consumer trends, competitors and branding. The tool suggests which products to prop up and how to improve underperforming listings. It also integrates with Canva to give advice on imaging, including everything from models to product placement and lighting.
It pulls from competitor’s data and overall consumer trends to inform its tips.
“It takes away a lot of that prioritizational stress,” Giorgi said. “It’s really nice to help customers get time and some of their sanity back.”
Customers can then have Soona enact those recommendations, either online with an AI editing studio, which is similar to an autonomous photoshop, or by outsourcing to a network of people that make unboxing, testimonial or action videos of the product.
Businesses can also go to one of Soona’s four studios — in Denver, Austin, Minneapolis and Los Angeles — for in-person shoots.
“AI needs to be a partner in the creative process and help us make decisions,” Giorgi said. “We’re not looking to replace anything, but we believe things can be done better, faster and cheaper by using AI.”
The tool is packaged in with Soona’s several subscriptions, which have monthly or yearly offerings ranging from $13 to $49 a month. Since launching in April, the AI tool has generated around $500,000 in revenue and grown exponentially, Giorgi said.
Given the initial promise, Soona looked to raise capital to bolster development. Giorgi said it takes around 5 percent to 10 percent of the business’ revenue to power the product.
Soona is also raising another $3 million to $4 million from new investors and expects to close that round in January, Giorgi said. The company is looking for new supporters who have a specific interest in driving down the cost of operating the tool. The data it collects is also something that has a lot of potential, Giorgi said.
“Soona is in a really privileged position of having a tremendous amount of first-party data about imaging and content,” she said. “It’s a pretty unique position to be in” when talking with potential funders, she added.
This raise brings their total to over $19 million, SEC filings show.
Soona has 25,000 customers, a number that has steadily grown by 5,000 in the last several years. The company also passed eight figures in annual revenue this year — a 40 percent increase from 2023. Giorgi said her company will be cash-flow positive in early 2025.
In November, the building at 1235 S. Broadway that houses Soona’s Denver studio and headquarters sold for $4.3 million. A group led by restauranter Julia Duncan-Roitman, who owns Joy Hill, a pizza joint in the building, bought it from Revesco Properties.
