Former Citadel trader’s startup WashWise raises $1.2M to reinvent laundry with ‘dry shampoo for clothes’

Most people have a chair, hook, or corner of the bedroom reserved for clothes that occupy an awkward middle ground: worn once, too clean for the washing machine, but not quite fresh enough to put back in the closet.

Former Citadel and J.P. Morgan trader Maria Cabral Menezes thinks that pile represents a business opportunity.

Her clothing-care startup WashWise has raised $1.2 million in pre-seed financing through a SAFE round and launched its first product, Reset Spray, a fabric spray meant to refresh clothes between washes.

The pitch is surprisingly simple. Instead of asking consumers to buy a better detergent for the washing machine, WashWise wants them to question whether some clothes need to enter the washing machine at all.

Menezes arrived at the idea after spotting what she saw as a gap in an enormous consumer category. Clothing spends roughly 99% of its life outside the washer, yet much of the clothing-care industry is centered on what happens during washing and drying.

“Everyone has experienced the moment where a piece of clothing isn’t dirty enough to wash, but doesn’t feel fresh enough to wear again,” said Maria Cabral Menezes, Founder of WashWise. “We realized there was an entire part of a garment’s life that had been completely ignored.”

That observation becomes more relevant as consumers spend more on higher-quality garments, repeat outfits, travel, and buy clothing through resale markets. Some fabrics can suffer from frequent washing, and dry cleaning brings its own cost and inconvenience.

With $1.2 million in funding, WashWise wants to own the space between wears

WashWise describes Reset Spray as something close to “dry shampoo for clothes.” The product combines several jobs normally handled separately. It refreshes clothing, reduces wrinkles, deodorizes fabric, and provides light cleansing without requiring a wash cycle.

The company is launching Reset Spray in two scents, Cotton Cooldown and Verde Rise. WashWise says the formula is plant-derived, non-toxic, skin-safe, and packaged using bag-on-valve technology.

WashWise reinvents laundry with ‘dry shampoo for clothes’ (Credit: WashWise)

A 6-ounce bottle can save up to $300 in dry-cleaning costs, about six hours of laundry time, 110 gallons of water, and 16 kWh of electricity over its use, according to company estimates. Those figures come from WashWise rather than independent testing, so real-world savings will vary depending on how customers use the product and what they would otherwise wash or dry-clean.

That distinction matters. Reset Spray isn’t trying to replace washing genuinely dirty clothing. Its target is the much fuzzier territory between freshly washed and ready for the hamper: the blazer worn to dinner, the sweater used for a few hours, or the dress that needs refreshing before another outing.

WashWise’s $1.2 million round brings together investors from several industries that could prove useful for a consumer brand. Backers include FJ Labs, Singh Capital, Alex Jekowsky, Jack Abraham, Brian Tate, Gigi Howard, Nina Farran, Mia Tonelli, Taylor James, and Brown Girl Angels. Executives and operators connected to Pickle, The Business of Fashion, Dior, SoulCycle, Soho House, Apple, and J.P. Morgan participated in the syndicate.

The startup plans to put the new capital into product development, partnerships, hiring, and customer acquisition.

WashWise now faces the harder part: convincing consumers that “between-wear clothing care” deserves to become a category of its own.

That’s an ambitious bet for a $1.2 million startup, but the behavior WashWise is targeting already exists. People routinely air out clothes, steam them, spray them, hang them over chairs, or simply decide whether they can get one more wear before laundry day.

Menezes isn’t trying to invent that habit. She’s trying to put it in a bottle and build a company around it.