Including Ghost and Videobot: five retail technology funding rounds you need to know about
RTIH rounds up five retail systems ventures who have recently secured significant investments in their businesses, including The Diamond Lab, Blanka, and Pi-xcels.
1. The Diamond Lab
UK jewellery brand, The Diamond Lab, has secured £450,000 of funding.
Steered by founder Jamie Amelia Patel, the London-based business, self-funded up until this point, has secured its first round of private financing; a £450,000 Series A, led by investor James Shulman.
Patel has forecasted £3.8 million in sales during its first year through international e-commerce, a London flagship store, and several brand partnerships due to be announced in the coming months.
The company will open its immersive bricks and mortar store located on New Bond Street by November.
Further lab grown diamond jewellery designs will also add to its three existing collections, including the exclusive Selfridges Yellow Diamond line.
2. Blanka
Blanka, a North America-based private label beauty and wellness platform, has closed a $2 million seed funding round.
This was led by Dundee Venture Capital, with participation from Storytime Capital, Disruption Ventures and other investors including Fatima Yusuf, former executive at Shopify, and Manica Blain, founder of Top Knot Ventures.
Founded in 2021 by Kaylee Astle, Doug Long, and Adam Chuntz, Blanka claims to do away with high manufacturing minimums, long production lead times, and analogue order forms. It enables a new beauty brand to be launched in under an hour, for less than $200.
3. Videobot
Videobot, a Finnish SaaS startup, has bagged €2 million in seed funding from Superhero Capital, Expon Capital Digital Tech Fund, and angel investors, Urban Gillstrom and Ari Korhonen.
The cash will be used to accelerate Videobot’s growth, especially in Europe and US markets, where the company has over 200 customers in 15 countries and in multiple industries.
"80% of internet traffic today is video. Videobot represents a paradigm shift in online communication," says Anssi Kiviranta, Co-founder of Videobot, which launched in 2022.
"Our platform seamlessly integrates the convenience of chatbots with the engaging power of short videos, opening new horizons for businesses to connect with their audiences."
4. Pi-xcels
Singapore-based digital receipt solutions specialist, Pi-xcels, has completed a seed funding round, raising $1.7 million.
This was led by Wavemaker Partners, with participation from other venture capital firms such as Hustle Fund, Amand Ventures, and Black Kite Capital, as well as strategic angel investors.
“We are shaping the future of retail with paperless receipts and data centric shopper journeys," says Pi-xcels CEO Daniel Lim.
"We are among the few use cases of NFC beyond payments. Not only does our app less technology enhance customer experiences, it also equips retailers with valuable data to better understand and cater to customers' preferences."
5. Ghost
Ghost, a members only B2B marketplace for surplus inventory, has raised $30 million in Series B funding, bringing the total to $68 million to date.
Venture capital firm Cathay Innovation led the round with participation from existing investors Union Square Ventures, Equal Ventures and Eniac Ventures. The company will use the funds to hire several roles in product, engineering and design while developing its platform further.
"Ghost has found a way to fundamentally change the industry and unlock billions for both buyers and sellers by focusing on access," says Simon Wu, Partner at Cathay Innovation, who is joining Ghost's board.
"By allowing sellers to stop being 'price takers' and generate superior recovery rates while simultaneously granting buyers access to premium, highly sought after inventory previously unattainable, Ghost grows the pie and creates win-win solutions for all parties.”
“We're excited to partner with Josh Kaplan and Dee Murthy - two well-known commodities in retail and tech and a natural founder-market fit - as they work to scale and expand into new categories and geographies.”
"We are leveraging data science and technology to solve a problem that has previously been addressed with phone calls and fax machines," says Josh Kaplan, Co-CEO at Ghost.
"Our alpha is the ability to predict everything from market pricing to sell-through, which is extremely powerful information for our customers. Through our team's deep expertise in the retail sector, Ghost has gained the trust of global brands across fashion, beauty, footwear, home goods and more.”
“We are expanding our reach across the globe and connecting more of the world's best retailers than ever before."
Continue reading…