Nothing has recruited a former Loewe executive to serve as its Chief Brand Officer and aims to go public within three years.

Author | Ou Xue

Editor | Yuan Silai

Nothing, a consumer technology company headquartered in London, recently announced two important strategic moves: hiring Charlie Smith, the former Chief Marketing and Communications Officer of luxury giant Loewe, as the Chief Brand Officer, and launching a new round of $5 million community investment.

Community financing and the introduction of high - end talents correspond to the two major challenges of "capital" and "brand" respectively. In the view of industry insiders, these two moves are key layouts for Nothing to strengthen its capital foundation and brand strategy in preparation for an IPO within three years.

Charlie Smith will join Nothing's executive team in January 2026 and report directly to Carl Pei, the founder and CEO of Nothing. Charlie Smith will be responsible for the company's global brand strategy, covering core areas such as brand image, marketing, external communication, and retail space design.

A group photo of Carl Pei and Charlie Smith (Photo source/Enterprise)

Charlie Smith has served as the Chief Marketing and Communications Officer of Loewe since 2018. During his tenure, Loewe was repeatedly named the "hottest brand in the world" by Lyst. He has led breakthrough collaborations with Studio Ghibli, On Running, and Japanese ceramic studio Suna Fujita.

Carl Pei said, "Charlie has rich experience in the intersection of luxury, creativity, and technology. He is the best candidate to help Nothing redefine the future of consumer technology."

On the other hand, Nothing has launched another round of financing, with the valuation remaining at the $1.3 billion level of the previous Series C financing.

This round of financing will open an early - bird channel on December 10 through the Wefunder and Crowdcube platforms and will be fully open on December 11. The company emphasized that despite continuous business growth since Series C, this round will still be offered at the same price per share.

"This round may be one of the last opportunities for the public to participate in the investment before the company goes public," Nothing revealed.

Actually, in September this year, Nothing just completed a $200 million Series C financing. So far, Nothing has received more than $450 million in cumulative investment from investors including Tiger Global, GV, Highland Europe, EQT, and Qualcomm Ventures.

In addition, the company has nearly 8,000 community investors who have invested a cumulative $8 million in previous rounds and participate in the company's decision - making through rotating community board seats.

Carl Pei said, "We are working towards meeting the IPO requirements within three years. As for the specific time, it will depend on the market environment at that time and the most reasonable choice for the company's business."

Founded in 2020, Nothing is a technology company focusing on consumer electronics hardware and ecosystems. Its product line includes smartphones and TWS earphones. In July this year, Nothing launched its third flagship phone, the Nothing Phone(3), and for the first time expanded its business to the over - ear headphone field, launching the Headphone(1). Carl Pei revealed that the company will launch its first batch of AI - native devices next year.

Hard Kr has learned that as of now, Nothing has delivered millions of devices, with cumulative revenue exceeding $1 billion and achieving a 150% year - on - year growth in 2024.

Against the backdrop of a stagnant and slow - growing global mobile phone market, Nothing's path to success is particularly unique. With its distinctive design, in - depth community co - construction, and differentiated positioning, it has successfully found its own niche in the highly competitive market dominated by giants.

Next, in the trend of AI reshaping the mobile phone industry, whether Nothing can achieve continuous growth through its community, design, and AI vision will be a key test for its IPO attempt. In addition, the introduction of a brand expert like Charlie Smith means that the company is trying to break through the tool attribute of technology products and upgrade to a consumer brand with cultural influence.

These strategic layouts paint a more imaginative valuation prospect for Nothing.