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§ Private Profile · Oakland, CA, USA
VSCO® is a company.
VSCO® has raised $40.0M across 1 funding round.
Key people at VSCO®.
VSCO® has raised $40.0M in total across 1 funding round.
VSCO (Visual Supply Company) provides a comprehensive platform centered on visual content creation and sharing. The company develops advanced photo and video editing software, featuring a wide array of iconic filters, specialized presets, and artificial intelligence-powered tools designed to enhance digital imagery. Its technical approach emphasizes sophisticated image manipulation and creative expression, offering users robust capabilities to refine their visual storytelling.
The company was founded by Joel Flory and Greg Lutze in 2011, officially launching its products in 2012. Their foundational insight stemmed from a recognition of the need for professional-grade creative tools and a supportive community for photographers and visual artists, moving beyond standard consumer applications to empower more serious creators with nuanced control over their work.
VSCO caters to a broad audience of visual creators, from aspiring photographers to established professionals seeking to hone their craft and connect with peers. The company's mission is to empower culture creators by bridging the gap between their creative aspirations and the essential tools, community, and confidence required to realize them. VSCO envisions a future where visual artists are equipped to both express themselves and potentially achieve commercial success through their work.
VSCO is a creative platform and photo-editing app company that builds tools for image editing and a community for sharing visual content. It offers professional-grade filters mimicking analog film effects (VSCO presets and VSCO Film), a mobile app (originally VSCO Cam), and a social network focused on inspiration rather than popularity metrics like likes or followers[1][2][3]. VSCO serves photographers, designers, and everyday creatives worldwide, solving the problem of inaccessible, high-quality editing tools and discovery platforms dominated by influencer algorithms by prioritizing content quality and community curation[1][2]. From a side hustle generating $250,000 in 48 hours via desktop presets in 2011, it evolved into a global company with over 100 employees across 160 countries, achieving profitability before raising venture capital and scaling through mobile photography shifts[1][3][5].
VSCO was founded in 2011 by Joel Flory, a former wedding and commercial photographer with over a decade of experience, and co-founder Greg Lutze, an art director and designer, alongside a small team including Zach who developed the core film-emulation technology[1][2][5][6]. The idea emerged from Flory's wrist injury forcing a career pivot and frustrations with the creative industry—tools like Adobe focused on functionality over people, lacking expression for non-professionals[2][3][5]. Starting as a garage shed "lifestyle business" after Flory pitched ideas to friends and launched five ventures, they pivoted to VSCO when Zach offered a Lightroom preset pack emulating film looks accurately; a simple sales site in November 2011 sold $250,000+ in 48 hours[1][3][5]. The mobile app VSCO Cam launched in April 2012 to promote the desktop tools, capitalizing on the iPhone 4S camera boom, with early traction from workshops funding initial development by part-time friends[1][3]. Pivotal moments included curating user content after noticing 95% had few followers, shifting to an inspiration-driven platform[1].
VSCO rides the wave of mobile-first creativity and democratized visual expression, timing perfectly with smartphone camera revolutions (iPhone 4 to 4S) that turned everyone into photographers[2][3][5]. It counters social media's toxicity—Instagram influencers and filter overload—by building a wholesome space for authentic sharing, influencing how platforms prioritize quality over virality[1][3]. Market forces like rising creator economies and AI image tools favor VSCO's established presets and global community (100M+ users historically), positioning it as a generational player in a $100B+ photo editing market amid Gen Z's analog aesthetic revival[2][5]. By empowering non-pros in unexpected regions and sharing scaling insights, VSCO shapes the ecosystem toward collaborative creativity[2].
VSCO's next phase likely involves deeper AI integration for editing/emotion-based discovery, expanded tools like VSCO Keys, and potential leadership transitions (e.g., professional CEO) to scale beyond founder-led growth[3][5]. Trends like AR/VR visuals, Web3 creator ownership, and analog nostalgia will propel it, evolving influence from niche tool to dominant creative hub. As mobile AI disrupts editing, VSCO's 14-year track record positions it to lead, always channeling creativity for global wins—proving a wedding photographer's hustle built an enduring platform[5].
Key people at VSCO®.
VSCO® has raised $40.0M in total across 1 funding round.
VSCO®'s investors include Ryan Sweeney, Goldcrest Investments.
VSCO® has raised $40.0M across 1 funding round. Most recently, it raised $40.0M VSCO - Series A in May 2014.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 6, 2014 | $40M Series A | Ryan Sweeney | Goldcrest Investments | Announced |
