Led · Series C · Dec 2018

Celect is a Boston, MA–based market leader in predictive analytics and inventory optimization for retailers, operating a cloud-based SaaS platform. Led by CEO John Andrews, its platform enables retailers and brands to predict future buying patterns both online and in-store to inform merchandising, allocation and fulfillment decisions. The technology allows retailers to optimize overall inventory portfolios in stores and across the supply chain. Clients include the ALDO Group, Lucky Brand, Neiman Marcus, Polo and Urban Outfitters. The company will use the $15M Series C financing to expand its engineering and sales teams, further enhance its patented technology solutions and grow its market share. As part of the financing, two investors joined Celect’s board. Celect offers a cloud-based platform that leverages machine learning to help retailers optimize omnichannel inventory portfolios across stores, online channels and supply chains. The platform provides a granular view of how customers choose between products and how products interact with each other. Celect targets retailers aiming to improve inventory allocation and merchandising decisions. The company was launched in 2013 and is led by CEO John Andrews. It plans to use new funding to accelerate product development and expand its customer base. Celect recently closed a $10M Series B financing. Celect is a Boston-based company that provides a data-driven customer choice modeling suite for retailers, using machine learning to analyze buying patterns. Its technology helps merchandisers, retail planners and inventory analysts create optimized, localized product assortments. The product aims to increase inventory turnover and revenue while improving customer experience. Celect was founded by MIT professors Vivek Farias and Devavrat Shah. The company launched with a $5M Series A and plans to use the funding to grow its management and development teams. It also intends to open expanded headquarters in Boston’s Innovation District.

Led · Series A · Nov 2017

ThirdChannel pairs a full data collection and analytics solution with an experiential network-for-hire to give brands and retailers real-time visibility into physical-store performance. Its platform unifies behavioral and operational store data into a single decision-making and communications dashboard, providing the same kind of rich, real-time analytics common in eCommerce. The system creates continuous feedback loops from field teams and store associates and generates action plans that factor product demand, merchandising, inventory levels, weather impact, and store traffic patterns so execution issues can be resolved quickly. ThirdChannel also operates an on-demand network of over 100,000 team members who compete to represent brands and can be contracted, trained, scheduled, and paid through the platform. Customers use the combined cloud analytics and ground teams for brand activations, sales training, visual merchandising, and field intelligence to drive in-store sales. The company said it closed a $7 million Series A to support expansion of its real-time platform across key markets.

Participated · Series A · Apr 2017

Flow sits on top of existing e-commerce platforms to automatically tailor a shopper’s experience to their location, providing local pricing and payment options. The platform leverages carrier relationships to offer timely, affordable international shipping and can manage logistics even for businesses with existing shipping deals. Founded in 2015 and co‑founded by CEO Rob Keve and CTO Mike Bryzek, Flow also uses AI to classify products for duty and tax calculations. The company reports 200% year‑over‑year client growth and counts customers such as MVMT Watches, MZ Wallace and Charles & Colvard. Flow combines a turnkey technology platform with a services business that offers country‑ and category‑specific consulting and best practices. It plans to use new capital to expand sales and marketing, improve the product, continue developing its AI, and build out its services layer. Flow provides a modular, cloud-native platform that makes it easier for e-commerce brands and retailers to sell in multiple geographies. The product bundles five modules: multi-currency pricing, localized payment options, a regional logistics network, an engine for customs/duties/taxes, and international returns handling. Founder and CEO Rob Keve says each module could be a standalone business, but Flow’s value is combining them into a single platform. The company aims to extend its platform to more e-commerce sellers and deepen integrations with regional payment and shipping providers. To accelerate growth and leverage retail relationships, Flow added investors with strong e-commerce connections. The article does not disclose revenue or user metrics.

Participated · Series B · Jun 2016

Narvar provides a SaaS-based post-purchase customer engagement platform that offers delivery tracking analytics, delivery notifications, returns management, feedback collection and timely customer communications. The company serves more than 500 global retailers, including Patagonia, Gap, Levi’s, TUMI and Sephora, and has added over 100 brands in the last 12 months, including Costco and Lululemon. Narvar has served nearly 5 billion customer interactions across 38 countries and 50 languages. In the past 12 months the company doubled both revenue and employee headcount. It has expanded its global presence into APAC and EMEA, opened a London office and made its first leadership hires in Germany. Narvar intends to use new funds to continue developing products while investing in international growth. Narvar is a San Bruno, Calif.–based startup that provides post-purchase software to help internet retailers manage deliveries, returns, and exchanges. Its platform aggregates data from complex carrier networks and uses predictive analytics to estimate delivery times and enable scheduling and control. The company serves major retailers including Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, Coach, Sephora, and Bass Pro Shops. Narvar aims to make delivery and returns more transparent and user-friendly to reduce customer frustration and drive loyalty and repeat purchases. The product accounts for retailers' use of 15+ shippers, regional carriers, and in-store fulfillment, and the company sees opportunities in expanding into new e-commerce categories and B2B sales. Narvar builds software that helps retailers engage customers after online purchases by improving shipping interfaces, text updates, returns, and re-purchase options. Its platform delivers granular shipment updates (for example, noting when storms halt packages) and aims to reduce support call volume while increasing retention. The company works with brands such as Nordstrom and Anthropologie. CEO Amit Sharma, who previously managed the delivery experience for Apple.com and worked on supply chains at Walmart, founded Narvar in 2010. Narvar raised $10M in its latest funding, bringing total capital raised to $12M after an earlier $2M seed round. The product’s goal is to move customers back up the marketing funnel—turning post-purchase interactions into opportunities for discovery and repeat sales—though retailers or platforms (Amazon, Gmail, Pinterest) could choose to own that experience themselves.

Led · Series C · Sep 2015

HookLogic is the pioneer of performance marketing for brands and partners with leading retailers and online travel agencies to accelerate sales for product brands and hotels. Advertisers use its platform to reach in-market shoppers, drive traffic to product pages, and attribute resulting sales. Network partners and advertisers include Walmart, Tesco, Target, Asda, Best Buy, Macy's, Expedia, Hasbro, Intel, LG, L'Oreal, Mondelez, Philips, Microsoft and Marriott. The company surpassed $100 million in sales in the prior year and has launched an aggressive international expansion. HookLogic is headquartered in New York and maintains offices in Ann Arbor, Santa Monica, London, Paris, and Toronto. CEO Jonathan Opdyke said the company is excited to partner with LUMA as it scales and grows. HookLogic operates a performance-marketing platform that integrates native search advertising across major retail and travel ecommerce sites, enabling advertisers to target shoppers and attribute sales. Thousands of brands use the platform across partners including Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Macy’s, Costco, Argos, Expedia and Priceline. The network spans more than 160 ecommerce sites in 69 countries and has access to over $90 billion in ecommerce sales for brand attribution; in the U.S. its retail network reaches more unique shoppers than Amazon, with web traffic expected to surpass Amazon in Q4 2015. Concurrent with the financing, HookLogic sold its AutoHook division to Urban Science; HookLogic said the investment plus proceeds from the divestiture will fund accelerated international expansion and technology investments, including mobile innovations. HookLogic is headquartered in New York and maintains offices in Ann Arbor, Santa Monica and London. HookLogic provides commerce search advertising products such as the Retail Search Exchange, TravelAds, and AutoHook that let marketers influence in-market shoppers on retail, travel, and automotive sites. Its network includes major partners and advertisers including Expedia, Target, AutoTrader.com, Chrysler, Intel, Newegg, and Staples. The company says the Retail Search Exchange enables brands to bid in real time for top search placement and to see closed-loop measurement of purchase activity. HookLogic reported six years of profitable growth prior to the new financing and operates headquarters in New York City with offices in Ann Arbor, Atlanta, and London. The company plans to use new funds to accelerate investments in sales and technology and to expand its Manhattan headquarters, moving to TriBeCa. New hires are planned in New York and in the Ann Arbor technology center. HookLogic provides technology and services designed to enable e-commerce retailers to incorporate paid media programs within their online, mobile, and social stores. It also provides brands and media agencies marketing opportunities that reach shoppers in the buying mode between consideration and purchase. The company intends to use the $9.5M it raised from Bain Capital Ventures to further develop its Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform and expand across the retail, travel and automotive sectors in North America and Europe. HookLogic is led by CEO Jonathan Opdyke and works with clients including Overstock.com, Meijer, Shoebuy.com, Wayfair and Expedia. The company is based in New York City and has offices in Ann Arbor, MI; Atlanta, GA; and Manchester, UK.