Sente, a specialty aesthetics firm in San Diego, announced that it has raised $5 million in financing.
The company will use the cash to fuel expansion by growing its domestic sales force, supporting the launch of new products, and pursuing international expansion.
Sente, founded in 2007, uses its foundation in biotech to develop science-based skin care products, and has manufactured and patented a topical form of Heparan for aging skin. The company reported top-line year-over-year growth of 266 percent, according to a Sente news release.
“We are excited about the significant progress Sente made in 2015 and are equally pleased with the continued financial support of our investors,” Faheem Hasnain, chairman of the board of Sente, said in a statement. “We look forward to an exciting year in 2016 with continued strong revenue growth.”
The company’s board of directors includes several biotech heavyweights, in addition to Hasnain, the former CEO of Receptos (sold for $7.2 billion to Celgene in 2015). They are Kleanthis Xanthopoulos, the former CEO of Regulus Therapeutics, and Magda Marquet, founder and co-chair of Ajinomoto Althea Technologies.
Xanthopoulos also co-founded Sente with longtime investor Marios Fotiadis.
