INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Commerce and marketing are radically changing these days
Consumers are increasingly looking for brands they identify with, while at the same time, the cost of acquiring users is increasing
year-over-year for marketers
For brands, that math makes marketing complicated: they want to reach the right customers with the most efficient acquisition channels in
Drop is a mobile app that scans your credit card purchases and then proceeds to give you offers on things you might want to spend money
on.Those offers have now led to a big offer from VCs, to the tune of a $44 million Series B round of capital led by Onsi Sawiris of HOF
In addition, the Royal Bank of Canada joined the round as a strategic investor.When we last caught up with CEO and founder Derrick Fung,
Drop had recently raised its Series A from NEA
In the interim, the startup has continued to grow rapidly, providing customers $19 million in rewards and helping to drive $350 million in
gain points and spend them, such as this offer from Warby Parker (Via Drop)Drop wants to take those digital ad dollars and turn them into
much more direct engagement with actual consumers
Kingdom.The loyalty space has heated up in the last few years with different strategic plays
Bumped, an app that pays consumers in the stock of the companies at which they shop, has raised capital from Canaan
Meanwhile, New York City-based Lolli has taken a similar approach but pays out bitcoin instead.Despite those new entrants, Fung believes
fundraise, it acquired YC-backed Canopy Labs, which offered a service that helped companies evaluate customer journeys on their sites
expands the depth of its two-sided marketplace.The company currently has 77 employees across its Toronto and New York offices, and expects
to double that count in the next 18 to 24 months
In addition to HOF and RBC, the round was joined by previous investors NEA, Sierra and White Star Capital.
