Cart.com Raises $98M to Empower Brand Scaling | Ecommerce Platform

Cart.com Secures $98 Million in Series B Funding

Cart.com, an e-commerce solutions provider headquartered in Houston, Texas, has successfully closed a $98 million Series B funding round. This latest investment brings the company’s total funding raised this year to $143 million.

Investment Details

The funding round was spearheaded by Oak HC/FT, with significant participation from PayPal Ventures, Clearco, G9 Ventures, Mercury Fund, Valedor Partners, and Arsenal Growth.

Furthermore, strategic investments were made by Sebastian Rymarz, CEO of Heyday, and Philip Krim, CEO of Casper.

This new capital follows a $25 million Series A round, finalized in July and led by Mercury and Arsenal, and a preceding $20 million seed round funded by Bearing Ventures.

Company Leadership and Founding

Omair Tariq, the current CEO of Cart.com, previously held executive positions at Home Depot and served as COO of Blinds.com.

He co-founded the company in September 2020 alongside Jim Jacobson, formerly the CEO of RTIC Outdoors.

The "E-commerce-as-a-Service" Model

Tariq explained that Cart.com delivers a comprehensive suite of software, services, and infrastructure designed to facilitate online business scalability.

The company aims to integrate the advantages of direct-to-consumer sales on platforms like Amazon and Shopify, creating substantial value for brands.

Tariq is championing the concept of “e-commerce-as-a-service,” consolidating essential business tools – storefront software, marketing solutions, fulfillment services, payment processing, and customer support – into a single, unified platform.

Addressing Market Needs

“A connected platform offers significant power,” Tariq stated. “There’s a need for a middle ground between direct-to-consumer and marketplace selling.”

He highlighted the drawbacks of paying percentage-based fees to marketplaces with limited customer data access, and the complexity of managing numerous disconnected plugins.

Strategic Acquisitions and Growth

Driven by validation of its core concept – evidenced by increasing demand from brands – Cart.com has pursued an active acquisition strategy.

To date, the company has acquired seven businesses, including AmeriCommerce, Spacecraft Brands, DuMont Project, and Sauceda Industries.

Tariq anticipates completing an additional three to four acquisitions before the year concludes.

Investor Confidence

The company also garnered interest from strategic investors such as Oak and PayPal, which Tariq believes will accelerate the company’s progress and success.

Oak HC/FT’s Perspective

Allen Miller, a principal at Oak HC/FT, expressed his confidence in Cart.com’s unique approach after thoroughly understanding Tariq’s vision for the company’s software, payment systems, and service offerings.

He believes Cart.com is addressing a gap in the current e-commerce infrastructure.

Supporting Business Expansion

Miller noted that Cart.com is ideally positioned to assist companies generating around $1 million in annual sales by allowing them to concentrate on growth while Cart.com manages the underlying operational tools.

“This is a highly valuable and distinctive offering for merchants,” Miller said. “The leadership of Omair and Jim, coupled with their inspiring mission to prioritize brands and empower the next generation of merchants, is truly impressive.”

He also praised their proven ability to identify and integrate acquisition targets effectively.

Future Investments and Expansion Plans

The new funding will be allocated to further technology development and a substantial expansion of the company’s workforce.

Cart.com plans to increase its headcount by at least fifteenfold, growing from fewer than two dozen employees to over 300 by the end of the year.

Currently, the company has nearly 70 job openings across various departments, including engineering, technology, digital marketing, and e-commerce.

Approximately half of the funds will be dedicated to additional acquisitions.

Current Performance and Reach

Cart.com currently serves over 2,000 e-commerce brands, including prominent names like GNC, Haymaker Coffee, and KeHE.

The company processes more than $700 million in gross merchandise value annually and experienced a 400% revenue increase since its platform launch in November.

Fulfillment Network

Cart.com operates nine fulfillment centers nationwide, enabling it to provide two-day shipping to 80% of the U.S. population, according to Tariq.

Empowering Brands

“We are empowering brands by providing them with the tools they need to succeed in e-commerce,” Tariq concluded.

“While some integrations are still in development to create a fully unified experience, our platform allows brands to seamlessly add fulfillment, marketing, or customer conversion tools with just a few clicks.”