Latest news with #Accel-backed
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Tiny AI ERP startup Campfire is winning so many startups from NetSuite, Accel led a $35M Series A
AI-powered accounting startup Campfire announced Monday that it has raised a $35 million Series A led by Accel, with participation from Foundation Capital, Y Combinator, Capital49, and angel investors including Mercury's CFO Dan Kang. 'Within nine months of formation, we had customers [with] north of 100 employees ripping out NetSuite and putting in Campfire,' founder CEO John Glasgow said. Some of Campfire's customers that have migrated from NetSuite include wealth management platform Advisor360, construction software startup Rhumbix, and customer experience company Fooji, Campfire says. This was, in part, because Glasgow attended YC in the summer of 2023, despite being decidedly more experienced than the typical 20-something YC founder. He described the age difference with a funny story: During a YC bingo event, 'One of the bingos was 'find someone that's a parent,' and I was the hot commodity at YC bingo.' Glasgow already had a decade and a half career in finance working for Fidelity, Union Square Advisors, and others. When his manager from Adobe left to run an Accel-backed startup called Invoice2go, he took Glasgow with him. Less than a year later, in the fall of 2021, bought Invoice2go for about $625 million. Glasgow wound up with both the cash and an idea to build his own startup, one that would automate the drudgery in finance like reconciling payments on bills, revenue forecasts, and — the part he discovered during the Invoice2go deal — due diligence for M&A. He launched Campfire in 2023 to upend 1990s-era enterprise resource planning accounting software (ERP) like Netsuite with an LLM-powered alternative. Campfire does things like automatically itemize and reconcile AWS cloud computing bills. It generates detailed cash flow analysis, charts, and answers to questions from natural-language prompts. 'One of our customers went from a 15-day to a three-day close when they ripped out NetSuite and put in Campfire,' he says about the time to finalize the books each month. YC's famed access to other cohort alums helped him land tech startups as customers, like Sierra AI and Replo. He has since not only landed unicorn fintech startup Mercury as a customer, but its CFO invested. While Campfire is just a gnat in terms of its impact on Oracle's billion-dollar (and growing) NetSuite business, the startup gained enough customers to prove its competitive plausibility. At its seed stage, Campfire grew to around 100 customers and is now up to 12 employees including, Glasgow said, one global customer on track to do a $250 million ARR. 'I was surprised that there were businesses of this size that were trusting their whole ERP to a 10-person, seed-stage project,' Accel's John Locke, who had backed Invoice2Go, told TechCrunch of what had enticed him with Campfire. Locke typically invests at the growth stage. But given that kind of 'traction out of the gates' and a total ERP software market of $56 billion in 2024, according to some market research reports, Locke was in to lead the A. And he was in big. '[The] AI ERP business is massive, and we think John is really the right person to do it. So why don't we do a $30 [million] to $35 million series A, and really go for it?' he told Glasgow and his partners. So they did. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
TechCrunch
a day ago
- Business
- TechCrunch
Tiny AI ERP startup Campfire is winning so many startups from NetSuite, Accel led a $35M Series A
AI-powered accounting startup Campfire announced Monday that it has raised a $35 million Series A led by Accel, with participation from Foundation Capital, Y Combinator, Capital49, and angel investors including Mercury's CFO Dan Kang. 'Within nine months of formation, we had customers [with] north of 100 employees ripping out NetSuite and putting in Campfire,' founder CEO John Glasgow said. Some of Campfire's customers that have migrated from NetSuite include wealth management platform Advisor360, construction software startup Rhumbix, and customer experience company Fooji, Campfire says. This was, in part, because Glasgow attended YC in the summer of 2023, despite being decidedly more experienced than the typical 20-something YC founder. He described the age difference with a funny story: During a YC bingo event, 'One of the bingos was 'find someone that's a parent,' and I was the hot commodity at YC bingo.' Glasgow already had a decade and a half career in finance working for Fidelity, Union Square Advisors, and others. When his manager from Adobe left to run an Accel-backed startup called Invoice2go, he took Glasgow with him. Less than a year later, in the fall of 2021, bought Invoice2go for about $625 million. Glasgow wound up with both the cash and an idea to build his own startup, one that would automate the drudgery in finance like reconciling payments on bills, revenue forecasts, and — the part he discovered during the Invoice2go deal — due diligence for M&A. He launched Campfire in 2023 to upend 1990s-era enterprise resource planning accounting software (ERP) like Netsuite with an LLM-powered alternative. Campfire does things like automatically itemize and reconcile AWS cloud computing bills. It generates detailed cash flow analysis, charts, and answers to questions from natural-language prompts. Techcrunch event Save $450 on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Save $200+ on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Boston, MA | REGISTER NOW 'One of our customers went from a 15-day to a three-day close when they ripped out NetSuite and put in Campfire,' he says about the time to finalize the books each month. YC's famed access to other cohort alums helped him land tech startups as customers, like Sierra AI and Replo. He has since not only landed unicorn fintech startup Mercury as a customer, but its CFO invested. While Campfire is just a gnat in terms of its impact on Oracle's billion-dollar (and growing) NetSuite business, the startup gained enough customers to prove its competitive plausibility. At its seed stage, Campfire grew to around 100 customers and is now up to 12 employees including, Glasgow said, one global customer on track to do a $250 million ARR. 'I was surprised that there were businesses of this size that were trusting their whole ERP to a 10-person, seed-stage project,' Accel's John Locke, who had backed Invoice2Go, told TechCrunch of what had enticed him with Campfire. Locke typically invests at the growth stage. But given that kind of 'traction out of the gates' and a total ERP software market of $56 billion in 2024, according to some market research reports, Locke was in to lead the A. And he was in big. '[The] AI ERP business is massive, and we think John is really the right person to do it. So why don't we do a $30 [million] to $35 million series A, and really go for it?' he told Glasgow and his partners. So they did.
Economic Times
a day ago
- Business
- Economic Times
IPO-bound Infra Market raises additional $50 million financing from Mars Growth Capital
Construction materials marketplace has raised an additional $50 million in debt financing from Mars Growth Capital, as it looks to fund expansion plans before a public listing. The infusion takes the total amount raised from the lender to $150 million. The latest financing from Mars Growth Capital, a joint venture between MUFG Bank and private credit firm Liquidity Group, also includes a five-year extension of the terms on its existing $100 million borrowing. The company said it will use the fresh capital to support its expansion plans and strengthen its presence across product categories and geographies. It currently offers over 15 product categories, including concrete, walling solutions, and steel, and operates a network of 250 manufacturing units. It has 10,000 retail touchpoints. This is second fundraise this year. In January, the company raised $125 million in a funding round to fuel expansion across India and global markets. Founded in 2016 by Souvik Sengupta and Aditya Sharda, Accel-backed supplies construction and home improvement materials, including concrete, steel, pipes, plywood, fans, lights, and kitchen and electrical appliances to real estate developers, contractors and architects. 'We continue to build on our vision of creating India's largest building materials platform, offering end-to-end solutions across the construction value chain, not only in India, but also globally,' Sengupta said in a statement. 'We are seeing growth opportunities as we rapidly expand our market presence, and create a best-in-class construction materials company out of India.' The funding comes at a time when the Mumbai-based company is preparing to file its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the aim of raising Rs 2,500 crore through an initial public offering (IPO) this fiscal year. The company has already appointed merchant bankers and legal advisors and aims to go public in the third or fourth quarter of FY26, subject to regulatory approvals. In May, rating agency India Ratings downgraded rating to 'BBB+/negative outlook' from 'A-/negative outlook' over concerns around its debt refinancing, liquidity position and negative cash flow from operations in FY25. In FY25, Hella Infra Market, the parent company of reported a 45% jump in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) to Rs 1,596 crore, with margins improving to 8.7% from 7.5% a year ago. Profit after tax rose to Rs 492 crore from Rs 378 claims to be the second-largest player by revenue in ready-mix concrete and among the top three in AAC blocks and tiles by capacity in India. It has also made strategic investments in brands such as RDC Concrete, Shalimar Paints, Emcer, Millennium Tiles, and company is among a growing list of industrial commerce platforms preparing for a public market debut. Others include Zetwerk, Ofbusiness, and JSW Luxe FinBrokers advised on the latest transaction.'This $150 million potential commitment reflects our conviction in vision and execution, as well as the transformative impact it is having across the construction value chain,' said Ron Daniel, cofounder and CEO of Liquidity Group. 'By combining Liquidity's technology-driven approach and underwriting capabilities with scale and ambition, we are enabling sustainable growth and supporting emergence as a global infrastructure leader.'
Mint
08-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Betting on speed: Can fashion startups survive the quick commerce gamble?
Funding for Indian fashion startups has sharply declined—from $611 million across 111 rounds in 2023 to just $55.9 million across 36 rounds in 2025, according to Tracxn data. Yet, despite dwindling investment, startups like Slikk and Accel-backed NEWME are doubling down on a risky, high-speed gamble: that consumers will pay for fashion delivered in under an hour. Slikk has secured $3.2 million in seed funding from Lightspeed Ventures to scale its 60-minute delivery model, while NEWME, which raised $18 million in its series A round, plans to offer 30-60 minute deliveries in Bengaluru and other metros. 'We will be ready to offer between 30-minute to 60-minute delivery in a lot of metro cities in a couple of months and that's a big priority for us," said Sumit Jasoria, co-founder of NEWME. Also read: Drone startups looking beyond defence to serve agriculture, quick commerce The rationale behind these rapid delivery models is simple: online fashion buying has typically been event-driven, but impulsive purchases still skew toward offline retail. The question remains: Can the economics of speed hold up in a fiercely competitive and capital-intensive market? Both startups—Slikk and NEWME—are betting they can redefine fashion e-commerce by offering delivery times that rival those of food delivery platforms. Myntra's 30-minute 'M-Now' and Flipkart's 8–16-minute 'Minutes' have already set the tone for instant fashion gratification, with both companies focusing on ultra-quick deliveries. The logic is straightforward: While online fashion buying has typically been event-driven, impulse purchases continue to be dominated by offline retail. By running dark stores stocked with fast-moving apparel for hyperlocal delivery, Slikk and NEWME offer deliveries within 60–90 minutes—significantly faster than Myntra or Flipkart, which usually deliver in 1–3 days due to their centralized inventory models. 'If you can collapse the delivery, return and refund cycle from 7-10 days to 60-90 minutes, the entire psyche of the customer changes," said Akshay Gulati, co-founder of Slikk. Also read: Indian q-comm upstarts sidestep expensive dark stores in ONDC push Specific figures for fashion within quick commerce are scarce, but according to Bain & Company, India's quick-commerce market is expected to grow over 40% annually until 2030, accounting for 10% of total e-retail spending. 'The Indian e-retail market has surged to approximately $60 billion in gross merchandise value," the report added. Central to this model is the idea that not all fashion is created equal. "This entire industry has run on a dropship, asset-light model," said Gulati. 'But we're applying a 20-80 principle in fashion: your top 20% of styles drive 80% of your revenue. You can have 10,000 items, but it's the top 2,000 that really move the needle." NEWME's model is even more focused, claiming that 90% of its sales come from just 10% of its styles. To maintain freshness, NEWME drops new collections every Friday and phases out old ones, treating styles almost like perishable goods. 'We want to keep curation close to consumers. We think of a style like milk—it has an expiry date, lasting just 60 to 90 days. That's why every Friday, we launch new collections and kill old ones. Freshness is core to our value proposition, and that drives very fast inventory turnover," added Jasoria. Both Slikk and NEWME have distinct strategies for addressing unsold inventory. Slikk employs a 'Try and Buy" model, allowing customers to try on items at delivery and return them instantly if unsatisfied. By prioritizing instant refunds, returned inventory is restocked and quickly made available for resale. NEWME operates a near-zero inventory model, producing items based on real-time demand data, further enhancing the agility of its operations. According to Rahul Taneja, partner at Lightspeed, the firm was drawn by Slikk's strong repeat user behaviour, evident in their month-on-month growth. 'As consumer expectations have changed, everything is desired sooner. And, so, within quick commerce, you're now seeing verticals emerge-fashion is prime among them," said Taneja. 'As young professionals enter the workforce and start earning, one of their main discretionary spend is towards looking good. It is visible in beauty, fashion and overall Instagram behaviour. That's a tailwind for the category, which is large, and the behaviour is repeatable," he added. Curation is also becoming crucial to consumer decision-making, as shoppers shift from doom scrolling through thousands of options to seeking speed and simplicity. 'If you want to deliver instant gratification to consumers, you also have to help them find options that are more relevant and trendier, so they can arrive at a decision faster," said Taneja. Despite the optimism, there are concerns about the profitability of the model. Running dark stores and offering rapid deliveries increase logistical costs. Fast fashion's dependence on variety further complicates inventory management. 'I don't think you can be profitable by just being digital," said Anand Ramanathan, partner consumer industry leader at Deloitte. 'And, therefore, the faster you scale offline and grow offline, the more likelihood of success in a fast fashion kind of setup. Especially since fast fashion has lower margins than some of the more premium segments," Ramanathan said. Also read: Who pays for cancelled rides? Maharashtra's new cab rules stir industry debate 'The more you depend on quick commerce, the more the margin bleed there will be," he said, adding that success in tier 2 and tier 3 markets will hinge not just on logistics, but behavioural change and price strategy. The quick-commerce fashion model, which typically operates with high burn rates due to the cost-intensive nature of logistics and customer acquisition, faces profitability challenges. However, founders argue that repeat purchases, scale and private labels will drive profitability over time. Beyond the immediate consumer appeal, however, a deeper question arises. 'With limited regulation, these platforms thrive on psychological nudges: pop-ups, flash discounts and interface tricks designed to drive impulse purchases," said Farheen, policy and trust analyst at the Advanced Study Institute of Asia at SGT University, Delhi. Farheen remarked that with limited regulation, these platforms thrive on psychological nudges like pop-ups, flash discounts and various dark patterns, which push consumers to make fast decisions without much thought. According to her, it's an entire ecosystem designed to prime the consumer to act on impulse. The results, she pointed out, are visible in the form of more confusion, less patience and a heightened sense of immediacy. Beyond the checkout, there are negative consequences, including burnout among gig workers, unsustainable waste from fast fashion cycles and growing pressure on small offline sellers. While quick commerce may make sense for platforms chasing scale, she questioned whether it truly works for those participating in it. Meanwhile, the challenges of quick commerce extend beyond consumer behaviour and logistics. For instance, NEWME is banking on high repeat usage to justify its cost structure, with physical stores acting as pseudo dark stores. Jasoria noted that the company operates 14 offline stores and plans to add 10 to 12 more by the end of the year. As Ramanathan points out, last-mile logistics and dark store operations account for the bulk of delivery costs, which remain high. NEWME's approach of using physical stores for faster deliveries adds to operational costs, exposing the startup to risks like demand volatility. Quick commerce excels with basics and trendy items but struggles with the 'fat middle"—the variety of less trendy or more niche items. Managing a wide range of stock keeping units (SKUs) is a challenge for fashion, as unpredictable demand for trendy items makes inventory management more complex, said Ashish Kumar, co-founder at Fundamentum. Fashion, however, is trickier due to the unpredictable demand for trendy items with short lifespans. This is partly why Meesho remains cautious, focusing instead on affordability and long-tail supply strategies for tier 2 and 3 markets, where price outweighs speed, according to Vidit Aatrey, co-founder and chief executive officer of Meesho. Kumar of Fundamentum echoes this concern, saying, 'In apparel, only about 40-60% of revenue comes from a narrow set of SKUs, unlike grocery where 80% comes from essentials. Fashion consumers seek variety, making the supply chain more complex." At the same time, platforms such as Wishlink and Lehlah are capitalizing on the growing trend of curated fashion, focusing on personalized recommendations to drive decision-making and accelerate the path from inspiration to purchase. Fundamentum has invested in Wishlink, a content-commerce platform, while Wishlink's peer, Lehlah, recently raised ₹ 12.5 crore (~$1.4 million), led by Nikhil Kamath's investment firm, Gruhas. Gulati, for now, is less focused on profitability. 'The key success metric for us at this scale is repeat user activity, not operational profit," he said, declining to share specific numbers.
Economic Times
06-05-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
BrowserStack acquires Y Combinator-backed Requestly to strengthen developer tools stack
Synopsis The terms of the deal have not been disclosed. The acquisition will add to Accel-backed BrowserStack's efforts to strengthen its developer productivity suite by integrating Requestly's open-source solution. Requestly has raised a total of $125,000 in funding to date.
