TômTex Raises $1.7 Million to Scale Production

Pre-Seed Round Will Enable Scaled Up Production and Strengthen R&D for Creating Revolutionary, Plastic-Free Biobased Textile Products

TômTex, a company developing revolutionary, plastic-free biobased material created from seafood shell waste or mushroom waste as a sustainable alternative to leather, today announced the closing of its pre-seed round totalling $1.7 million of capital raised.

SOSV led the funding round, joined by Nucleus Adventures Capital, C3 Ventures, CRCM Ventures, Gaingels, Portfolia Food and AgTech Fund, Chasing Rainbow Ventures and Angels. The investment will be used to fuel research and the scaling up of its engineered chitosan biomaterial technology.

“At IndieBio, we look for companies that want to make a difference in the world and have the passion and skills to deliver on their dreams, and we found that in abundance with TomTex,” said Stephen Chambers, Partner and Managing Director of IndieBio New York, a part of SOSV. “The company combines designer sensibility and material science to build a sustainable material with both the aesthetic and performance of natural leather.”

Bio-based materials are the future, and TômTex is designing the petrochemical-free revolution. The New York-based startup has received numerous awards and honors and gained the trust of prestigious investors and customers nationwide and internationally for its material, which uses seashell and mushroom waste as its foundation.

Chambers continued: “We are pleased to support TômTex as they look to disrupt the fashion world by delivering sustainable alternatives to animal and plastic leathers. We will continue to leverage our extensive network of investors and industry professionals to strengthen the company’s ability to scale these sustainable materials and maximize their role in decarbonizing the economy.”

TômTex’s first market will be the Luxury leather goods industry valued at $74B in 2022 and TômTex foresees its potential applications in other industries such as Industrial Design, Consumer electronics and Automotive.

“I started TômTex based on my experience in textile pollution and leather manufacturing just a few blocks from my home in Vietnam,” said Uyen Tran, Founder and CEO. “Look around us, materials are the starting point for everything. I believe that materials fundamentally have a great impact in our everyday lives and lifestyles. At TômTex, we envision a world where people surround themselves with high-performing materials, sourced directly from waste, not from fossil fuels.”  

Life Cycles observed in nature were the original inspiration for the company’s co-founders, CEO Uyen Tran, COO Atom Nguyen, and Chief Scientific Officer Ross McBee, to create a process for biobased materials from waste.

In 2020, they founded the company to develop biomaterials with exceptional performance properties that could substitute conventional materials which use toxic processes or fossil fuels.

“Our patent-pending technology uses 100% biobased inputs and produces high-performance, exceptionally green materials. We’re thrilled to continue to develop and scale our process to bring the next generation of biomaterials into the hands of consumers,” said Dr. Ross McBee, Co-founder and CSO.

By using entirely green chemistries, TômTex creates entirely biodegradable exotic leather substitutes with incredible strength and beauty. This is an important moment for the company as it allows TomTex to continue to develop the right industry partnerships while enhancing the technology.