Up to 2 million members, Dollar Shave Club worth $615 million, investors say

Dollar Shave Club Inc., the brand of men’s grooming products born out of a holiday party conversation in 2010, apparently is now worth about $615 million.

The valuation comes after the Venice start-up’s latest fundraising campaign, which brought in $75 million in venture capital. Including Monday’s haul, Dollar Shave Club has received $148 million from investors, and it’s on track to generate at least $140 million in revenue this year.

The company mails razor blades to its 2 million subscribers every month or two. It also sells moist towelettes, shaving butter and hair-styling products. Gillette and other competitors are now doing the same. But Dollar Shave Club is seeking to maintain an edge by expanding to new products, trying to offer superior customer service and providing related online content. As Chief Executive Michael Dubin put it, the goal is “owning the men’s bathroom.”

Dubin started the venture after chatting about the hassles of shaving with eventual co-founder Mark Levine, father of a friend’s fiancée. The two combined talents and later paired up with Santa Monica start-up building program Science Inc. to get Dollar Shave Club rolling.

Last summer, the company had about 1 million subscribers and expected annual revenue of $60 million.

The new funding came from Technology Crossover Ventures, Dragoneer, Comcast Ventures and Forerunner Ventures.

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