*By Madison Alworth* Not all retail start-ups are having an easy time navigating the market amid stiff competition from the likes of Amazon and Walmart. But [Brandless](https://brandless.com), the everyday essentials retailer, just raised an additional $240 million in funding after only one year of operation. Tina Sharkey, the CEO and a co-founder of Brandless, said her company is a singular community. "We don't see those companies as competition. It's a massive country, and we are talking about a massive total addressable market," Sharkey said Monday in an interview on Cheddar. "There's a lot of room for a lot of players." Brandless is determined to bring affordable everyday products to the American household. Sharkey joined Cheddar just a few days after [launching in July 2017](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-online-grocery-store-that-sells-everything-for-3) to explain the mission of selling no product for more than $3. Since then, the company has grown from 110 product offerings to over 300 ー but the message of access remains the same. "We don't care what cohort you fall into ー you're a human, you're a person. You deserve better," Sharkey said. "This is the democratization of access and the democratization of goodness." Basketball superstar Stephen Curry seems to agree. The Golden State Warrior invested in the retailer after hearing Sharkey's remarkable story. Sharkey called it a development that built "profit and purpose." "I was telling the story of Brandless ー we weren't even fundraising at the time," she said. "And I said, look guys, what does your legacy stand for? Do you want to see the country that represents your values? Do you want to see the country where the people who mopped the floors, the coaches who supported you in high school, the bus drivers who waited for you, the cafeteria ladies that made you extra food \[are supported\]. Where's the tangible act of kindness?" And with that, Curry was hooked. "Steph stood up in the middle of all that and said, 'Mic drop, Sharkey. We're getting behind you.' And I started to cry," she said. The new round of financing, led by SoftBank and its Vision Fund, brings Brandless's total capital raise to $292.5 million. Sharkey plans to use the money to expand the company's operations and offerings. By the end of the year, she predicts Brandless will offer 400 products and conquer more product categories. For more on this story, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/brandless-raises-an-additional-240-million-in-series-c-funding).
