Melbourne-based clothing technology company Bodd has raised $5 million as it aims to use its 3D body scanning technology for advanced manufacturing.

The round. announced on Christmas Eve, was led by retail entrepreneurs Candice and Nick Hirons, founders of the G-Star brand, backed by a range of family offices and wealthy figures. Bodd’s executive chairman, Tim Allison, who is also founder and chairman of Virtual Gaming Worlds, is one of the investors.

The capital will support Bodd’s expansion into the North American wellness, fashion retail and pharmaceutical markets and strengthen its existing footprint in the uniform industry, in addition to increasing staff.

The Melbourne-based startup is using data from 3D scans to create better shopping experiences for both consumers and brands in the fashion, uniform, gym and pharmacy sectors. An unobtrusive 60-second scanner, manufactured in Australia by Bosch, captures all the data needed to create a body “passport.”

It allows companies, provided the owner has given permission to use the data, to make customized offers, from clothing to product recommendations and personalized health outcomes.

The technology is also the result of five years of research by Bodd’s engineering team together with Swinburne University of Technology and RMIT.

Bodd’s raise comes after it won company of the year at the VicLaunch-backed Pause Awards last month. The annual awards recognize emerging Australian technology companies.

Co-founder and CEO Rob Fisher said he was delighted to see such broad support from investors as they look to expand globally.

“We are delighted to welcome our new shareholders to Bodd. Their support and expertise will be invaluable in building the world’s leading exchange of human body data right here in Australia,” he said.

“Body data shows incredible potential to be a positive force in the world and Bodd is well positioned to become the global standard.”

Chris Dixon, CEO of Australian Defense Apparel (ADA), has teamed up with Bodd to serve the international market as well.

“Bodd plays an important role in helping ADA deliver on our promise to combine industry-leading textiles and new technologies to solve apparel distribution challenges,” he said.

“This revolutionary non-contact digital fitting technology provides a seamless user experience as it dramatically reduces the time required to fit and equip defense personnel. We are excited to be the first to roll this out to the New Zealand Defense Force in early 2023.”