Raise Report: Grand Rounds, iZettle, Yummly Secure Fresh Funding
In this new feature, every two weeks we’ll round up some of the biggest fundraises taking place in hyperlocal marketing, commerce, and tech.
August 24: Grand Rounds grows, looks to reduce health care costs.
Grand Rounds has gained more traction in the health care delivery space, raking in $55 million to take its total funding to $106 million, Fortune reported last week. Founded in 2011, Grand Rounds simplifies the process of finding a reliable doctor, replacing Google searches and phone calls on the part of the patient with a data-driven, doctor-assessment algorithm. The service has scored support from both individuals and corporations looking to keep insurance costs low. Grand Rounds will use its new funding to court more customers, including bigger companies, which may mean adding to a list that already counts several Fortune 500 enterprises. Among its investors are former Facebook Chief Financial Officer David Ebersman and the Rockefellers’ venture capital firm, Venrock, Reuters reported.
August 27: Narvar, which bolsters retailers’ online customer retention rates, hauls in $10 million.
Strategic ecommerce means going beyond a transaction, using digital tools to entice clients on the web to come back for more. For companies struggling with trade in the information age, there’s Narvar, a company that streamlines post-purchase processes such as shipping and return purchase offers. Narvar’s services have convinced big-time investors Accel Partners and Freestyle Capital, among others, to grant it $10 million in series A funding, TechCrunch reported. Narvar will use the capital to enhance its services, capitalizing on new technologies and data analytics to provide the best post-purchase experience possible for retail customers, according to the company’s blog.
August 27: With $1.6 million in seed, Pronto takes on every stage of food delivery.
The food delivery space is saturated with startups, but Pronto, a London-based service that cooks its own dishes, delivers them, and offers a healthy meal, has convinced investors it is distinct enough to carve its own niche. Pronto recently bagged $1.6 million from Playfair Capital and Seedcamp, according to TechCrunch. Because Pronto handles all the operations associated with its business, the company keeps 100 percent of its profits, and it has proved popular among the clients it has thus far attracted, receiving over five orders per month from a number of clients and more than an order per day from others.
August 28: iZettle will use $67 million Series D to help SMBs grow.
iZettle, which has staked a name for itself helping European SMBs manage card payments, is moving into an additional role, offering SMBs in which it sees potential loans to scale up. A $67 million Series D, led by Intel Capital and Zouk Capital, will drive this expansion of operations, called iZettle Advance, Business Insider reported. In addition, iZettle will target more markets in Europe and Latin America, where it is already successful, and possibly SMBs in the U.S., a zone it has yet to touch, TechCrunch reported.
September 1: $15 million round pushes Yummly past $100 million valuation.
Yummly, the grocery delivery and recipe recommendation service that tracks user preferences, has reached a $100 million valuation, raising $15 million last week in a round led by Bauer Venture Partners, TechCrunch reported. The company’s service aims to spice up users’ diets. After users submit recipes they have tried and enjoyed to Yummly, the service breaks down the components of those recipes and generates similar suggestions. Through a partnership with grocery delivery bellwether Instacart, Yummly can also arrange for necessary ingredients to be brought to users’ doors. The latest infusion of capital will catalyze Yummly’s efforts to forge strategic partnerships and expand its culinary offerings.
September 2: Zirx, an on-demand valet, receives big boost from BMW.
Zirx, already the recipient of about $36 million in venture capital, added to that sum this week, scoring “multiple millions” and a big vote of confidence from auto giant BMW, according to Business Insider. Zirx provides a solution to the bane of any urban driver’s existence — parking. The company rents spaces in a number of garages in a given city where its service is available. When a car using it is on the move, Zirx tracks the car’s location, sending a valet driver to meet the service user upon arrival, and when the driver is ready to recuperate his vehicle, a few clicks in the app will have the car back in its driver’s hands. With the funding, Zirx will turn its attention to nailing down key partnerships with big businesses, hoping to make its service a corporate benefit.
September 3: Databox raises $3.3 million to break down analytics for everyday SMB owners.
Databox has kicked off funding efforts with a robust $3.3 million seed round led by Founder Collective, according to a press release published yesterday on Private Equity Hub. The company’s appeal is simple: In an age where the quantity of data available to business owners can be dizzying, Databox steps in, culling useful figures from a sea of numerals and framing them into legible terms. Databox will use the funds to grow its team and refine its product.
Joseph Zappa is an editorial assistant at Street Fight.
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