Paola & Joy case study

About Paola & Joy

Paola & Joy is a Melbourne-based homeware brand that FlexCap has supported since 2022. The brand was born out of a desire to pursue an entrepreneurial journey. Originally a digital marketer and ads specialist, the founder developed a passion for interiors and a love for being at home. Seeing an opportunity to democratise interiors, the founder aimed to create beautiful and affordable pieces without the pressures of being a designer. In just over two years, Paola & Joy has grown significantly, and the founder has enjoyed the personal growth that has come with the journey.

Industry

Homeware

Funds for

Inventory & Operational Expenses

Business Model

Direct-to-Consumer

Challenge

Initially, Paola & Joy was bootstrapped to gain traction. The business operated in a cycle of saving and spending, which proved to be a slow process for growth. As the brand scaled, the need to spend more on orders increased, leaving no budget for marketing experiments or new collections. This cycle limited the budget to replenishment rather than growth. Cash flow and operations have been ongoing challenges, particularly with a hybrid model of wholesale and direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales and limited historical data for inventory forecasting. Agility in spending has been crucial, and FlexCap has provided an effective solution to these challenges.

"We've always been in a cycle of save and spend, which is quite a slow process to grow," explains the founder. "As we scaled, we needed to spend more to order more, and it left us no budget to experiment in marketing and produce new collections."

Getting funded

Paola & Joy explored various non-equity capital solutions, but FlexCap stood out as the one that truly supported and recognised the potential for business growth. While other solutions judged the business's infancy, FlexCap saw the opportunity and offered the necessary support.

"FlexCap has been a great solution for our cash flow challenges," says the founder. "They saw the potential in our business and supported us through the early stages, unlike other solutions that judged us by our infancy."

Results

The growth achieved in just two years is a source of immense pride. Paola & Joy has secured over 100 stockists across Australia, and the customer base has grown significantly. The brand has built a strong relationship with a community of home lovers, guiding the business in developing new collections and sustaining growth.

Looking ahead, Paola & Joy aims to diversify its sales channels and expand beyond Australia and New Zealand. The brand is excited about the potential future growth and the new opportunities that lie ahead.

"We're very excited to see where the brand could go," the founder adds. "We're hoping to keep diversifying our sales channels and look to expand outside of Australia and New Zealand in the future."