Stackline raised $50 million from Goldman Sachs Growth Equity to fuel its online retail intelligence platform as the e-commerce industry grows rapidly amid the pandemic.
The Seattle startup helps clients such as Sony, Levi’s, Starbucks and others with their e-commerce businesses, providing market data, advertising automation, operations management, and more tools to bolster how companies sell products online.
The pandemic has caused a surge in e-commerce as people buy more products online versus at a physical store. U.S. online sales were up 32.6% year-over-year through the first nine months of 2020. That’s driving activity for companies such as Amazon, Walmart, Instacart, and other marketplace platforms where brands sell goods online. And that means more business for Stackline.
“Our company has continued to grow faster than ever,” said Stackline CEO Michael Lagoni.
The new funding is described as a Series A round, but Lagoni said it’s the first outside capital raised by Stackline.
The company launched seven years ago and is led by Lagoni, a former Amazon manager. He co-founded Stackline with Mitch Keidan, Raj Ramasamy, and Michael Masaki (who is no longer at the company).
Stackline initially provided consulting services for consumer brands, acting somewhat like an agency. The company funneled its profit from the services business into the development of a data platform, eventually evolving into a profitable software business.
Lagoni said the company competes against a bevy of agencies, analytics firms, advertising startups, and more. Stackline sets itself apart by offering a one-stop shop for e-commerce help.
“We have a really unique combination of tools and services that are all seamlessly integrated into one system — no one else in the industry has been able to match that,” Lagoni said.
Stackline is among several e-commerce startups in the Seattle region — home to Amazon, Starbucks, Costco, Zulily, and more giant retailers — aiming to help brands with their online businesses. Others include InsightLeap, Ideoclick, Replenium, Downstream, Gradient, Fabric, and SoundCommerce.
Stackline has 95 employees across three offices and is hiring.
“E-commerce is accelerating in size, growth and complexity, driving the need for an end-to-end platform and a trusted partner to assist brands as they navigate this ecosystem of online retailers,” Olga Kaplan, an investor with Goldman Sachs, said in a statement. “Stackline has built a very impressive business on the back of these market tailwinds.”
Goldman Sachs is also an investor in Seattle-based telehealth startup 98point6, which just raised a $118 million round as it rides another pandemic trend of increased virtual healthcare.
