Mobile retail platform provider NewStore Inc. said today it received $50 million in Series B funding, with Activant Capital leading this latest round. Returning investors include General Catalyst and company founder Stephan Schambach and the funds raised to date tally $90 million.
Schambach previously founded Demandware, which was bought by Salesforce and is now known as Salesforce Commerce Cloud. NewStore said it will use the investment “to expand its innovative platform and roll out the solution for retailers looking to realize their omnichannel aspirations.”
Schambach said the “future of retail is mobile. We are the only platform that delivers a full end-to-end omnichannel experience, from app to aisle. We take care of the heavy lifting for retailers, so they don’t need to spend precious resources on software development.”
The platform is customizable and works with “all existing e-commerce platforms and eliminates the need to patch together disparate point solutions,” the company noted, adding that the ways consumers shop and buy has “fundamentally changed, and retail must transform for the mobile age in order to build relationships and keep loyal customers.” The NewStore platform was built with these retail market changes in mind, and is designed to “seamlessly connect” shoppers with products and sales associates.
“Shopping has become a streaming activity,” Schambach explained. “Consumers want to check inventory, browse products, place orders and write reviews at their own convenience — on a mobile phone. They can create a shopping experience at anytime they want, tailored specifically for them. Think of it as ‘Streaming Retail.'”
Steve Sarracino, partner at Activant Capital, said nearly “every industry in the world has been disrupted by mobile, and one of the most affected is retail. Consumers demand seamless experiences across channels, and brands are ill-equipped to deliver.”
Larry Bohn, managing director at General Catalyst, praised NewStore and its founder and said Schambach’s latest venture “has enormous potential and will unlock incredible value for the retail industry.”
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