Raise Report: New Rounds for EzCater, Checkr, Netsertive
Every two weeks, we round up some of the biggest fundraises taking place in hyperlocal marketing, commerce, and tech.
October 6: Skurt nets $1.3 million in seed funding to disrupt rental car industry
Rental car delivery service Skurt kicked off funding with a $1.3 million seed round last week, cashing in on an early vote of confidence from Upfront Ventures, which led the round, TechCrunch reported. The startup has taken its place in the ever-growing on-demand economy: Users request one of Skurt’s 5,000 cars in Los Angeles and a Skurt chauffeur promptly arrives, drives renters to their car, and hands over the keys. The funding will likely aid the company’s upcoming expansion to San Francisco, where it will compete with Getaround, a similar service with more revenue than Skurt but one-third as many as cars at its disposal.
October 6: EzCater secures $28 million Series C
EzCater, a catering platform that connects over 40,000 restaurants with client businesses in over 23,000 U.S. cities, announced $28 million in new funding last week, Fortune reported. Insight Venture Partners led the Series C, which will propel EzCater’s efforts to scale up, further cementing its position as the market leader among online catering platforms. According to Fortune, the company edges the vast (and ever-growing) food delivery competition thanks to the unmatched availability of its caterers across the U.S., making EzCater an indispensable resource for corporate clients who travel the country for meetings.
October 7: Netsertive raises $15 million to give SMBs a marketing upgrade
Netsertive, a digital marketing company, netted $15 million in Series C funding last week. River Cities Capital Funds led the round, which will aid Netsertive as it seeks to bolster the size and strength of its sales and marketing teams as well as refine its technology infrastructure, Triangle Business Journal reported. Netsertive CEO Brendan Morrissey told Triangle Business his company’s rapid growth can be attributed to its efforts to help big brands forge relationships with local businesses, a market for partnerships that remains largely untapped.
October 9: Glamsquad scores $15 million to bring stylists to your door
Glamsquad, which delivers beauty salon services to consumers wherever they are, has closed $15 million in Series B funding led by New Enterprise Associates, WWD reported. The concept is simple: Users in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles book an appointment to get their hair styled, nails painted, or makeup applied via the company’s app, and one of Glamsquad’s more than 300 professional contractors does the job, showing up at the user’s home, office, or hotel when scheduled. Thanks to the newly acquired capital, Glamsquad soon will be available in Washington D.C., Dallas, and Chicago as well.
October 13: Boomtrain racks up $12 million in Series A funding
Boomtrain, whose marketing software allows companies to create personalized user experiences like those available on Netflix and Spotify, announced $12 million in Series A funding this week, according to Direct Marketing News. Boomtrain’s technology enables a site to anticipate the products and content each of its users wants to see, maximizing the efficiency of the user’s experience and, ideally, drawing her back for another visit. Sierra Ventures, Cota Capital, and Lerer Ventures participated in the round, which brings Boomtrain’s total funding north of $14 million and will allow it to refine its “marketing personalization platform.”
October 14: Checkr to haul in Series B of at least $30 million from Y Combinator
The rise of on-demand services like Uber and Instacart that depend on contractors has precipitated robust demand for background checks that can keep customers of these services safe. Checkr has answered the call for top-notch background check technology, offering a streamlined online background check process as well as an API that can be integrated into any company’s hiring software. It is poised to collect a Series B of over $30 million led by Y Combinator, TechCrunch reported this week. TechCrunch’s sources indicated that Checkr will use the funding to develop its business and strengthen its staff.
October 14: BuildZoom grabs over $10 million to streamline home improvement
BuildZoom, which connects homeowners with contractors who do home improvement jobs, announced $10.6 million in new funding this week, according to Forbes. Formation 8 led the round, which also drew funds from Y Combinator and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund. BuildZoom co-founder and president Jiyan Wei told Forbes his company will focus on relatively large-scale work, setting up deals for projects like full-room renovations as opposed to daily maintenance jobs. With the funding, BuildZoom will look to expand its engineering and data science teams, the company stated in a release.
Joseph Zappa is an editorial assistant at Street Fight.
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