Forerunner Ventures is a venture capital firm founded in 2010 and based in San Francisco, California. The firm specializes in investing in high-growth, privately-held branded consumer companies, particularly within sectors such as online commerce, social/mobile commerce, and internet marketplaces. Forerunner Ventures aims to understand the evolving mindset of modern consumers and supports entrepreneurs who are positioned to meet future consumer needs. By providing funding, strategic guidance, and consumer insights, the firm helps to transform industries and drive cultural advancements. With a focus on seed stage and Series A investments, Forerunner typically invests between $250,000 and $500,000 in initial funding, with the potential for additional investments in high-performing companies. The firm prefers to partner with companies in the Bay Area but also considers opportunities in New York and Los Angeles, often seeking collaboration with local investors when companies are outside its primary geographic focus.
Fora is a modern travel agency focused on empowering travel entrepreneurs and enthusiasts by curating exceptional experiences for travelers. The company aims to support 100,000 travel entrepreneurs by providing personalized services that cater to individual travel styles. Fora assists clients in planning their trips from inception to booking, facilitating connections with advisors who understand their specific preferences and aspirations. This approach not only enhances the travel planning experience but also fosters a community of knowledgeable travel creators dedicated to delivering memorable journeys.
Fora
Seed Round in 2021
Fora is a modern travel agency focused on empowering travel entrepreneurs and enthusiasts by curating exceptional experiences for travelers. The company aims to support 100,000 travel entrepreneurs by providing personalized services that cater to individual travel styles. Fora assists clients in planning their trips from inception to booking, facilitating connections with advisors who understand their specific preferences and aspirations. This approach not only enhances the travel planning experience but also fosters a community of knowledgeable travel creators dedicated to delivering memorable journeys.
Curated
Series C in 2021
Curated, founded in 2017, offers a collaborative shopping platform aimed at enhancing the online shopping experience by providing personalized, expert advice. The platform connects customers with knowledgeable specialists who guide them through complex purchase decisions, ensuring that shoppers receive unbiased recommendations tailored to their specific needs. Specializing in outdoor sporting goods such as skiing, snowboarding, golf, camping, cycling, and fishing equipment, Curated is expanding into new product categories. This innovative approach not only helps customers find the right products but also allows experts to earn meaningful income based on their passions and expertise. Backed by notable venture firms, Curated is rapidly growing and redefining the online retail landscape.
Lolli
Series A in 2021
Lolli, Inc. is a company that specializes in a rewards platform enabling users to earn bitcoin while shopping online. Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, Lolli offers a browser extension for the Chrome browser that partners with over 1,000 top brands. When users make purchases from these partner sites, Lolli receives a percentage of the sale and shares a portion of that revenue with users by sending bitcoin directly to their Lolli wallet. This platform provides an accessible way for consumers to earn cryptocurrency as an alternative form of currency for their online transactions.
Dumpling
Series A in 2020
Dumpling, Inc. is a company that develops an application designed to help individuals establish and manage independent grocery shopping and delivery businesses. Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, with an office in Berkeley, California, Dumpling provides entrepreneurs across the United States with essential tools, technology, and business support. The platform facilitates grocery shopping and delivery services, empowering thousands of local business owners in all 50 states. By offering features such as storefront applications, programmable debit cards, customer relationship management, and marketing automation, Dumpling enables users to create and monitor their personal franchises effectively. The company aims to foster local entrepreneurship and provide communities with personalized, ethical solutions for essential household errands and services.
Curated
Series A in 2019
Curated, founded in 2017, offers a collaborative shopping platform aimed at enhancing the online shopping experience by providing personalized, expert advice. The platform connects customers with knowledgeable specialists who guide them through complex purchase decisions, ensuring that shoppers receive unbiased recommendations tailored to their specific needs. Specializing in outdoor sporting goods such as skiing, snowboarding, golf, camping, cycling, and fishing equipment, Curated is expanding into new product categories. This innovative approach not only helps customers find the right products but also allows experts to earn meaningful income based on their passions and expertise. Backed by notable venture firms, Curated is rapidly growing and redefining the online retail landscape.
Neighborhood Goods
Series A in 2019
Neighborhood Goods, Inc. operates a department store that features a diverse array of apparel, accessories, cosmetics, and groceries. Established in 2017 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company provides an evolving selection of brands and products while also creating community spaces for social engagement. Neighborhood Goods offers both in-store and online shopping experiences, allowing customers to explore and purchase a variety of daily use items. The store also hosts events and activities, fostering connections among visitors through immersive content and live discussions.
ShopShops
Series A in 2019
ShopShops is a livestream, interactive global shopping marketplace that connects brick and mortar retailers with consumers on their mobile devices. The new digital shopping channel breaks down geographical boundaries for fashion-savvy consumers, enabling them to shop from stores around the world from the palm of their hand. ShopShops was founded by Liyia Wu in 2016 and has headquarters in New York City and Beijing. To learn more, visit www.shopshops.com.cn.
Neighborhood Goods
Seed Round in 2019
Neighborhood Goods, Inc. operates a department store that features a diverse array of apparel, accessories, cosmetics, and groceries. Established in 2017 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company provides an evolving selection of brands and products while also creating community spaces for social engagement. Neighborhood Goods offers both in-store and online shopping experiences, allowing customers to explore and purchase a variety of daily use items. The store also hosts events and activities, fostering connections among visitors through immersive content and live discussions.
Lolli
Pre Seed Round in 2018
Lolli, Inc. is a company that specializes in a rewards platform enabling users to earn bitcoin while shopping online. Founded in 2018 and headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, Lolli offers a browser extension for the Chrome browser that partners with over 1,000 top brands. When users make purchases from these partner sites, Lolli receives a percentage of the sale and shares a portion of that revenue with users by sending bitcoin directly to their Lolli wallet. This platform provides an accessible way for consumers to earn cryptocurrency as an alternative form of currency for their online transactions.
Away
Series C in 2018
Away is a modern travel and lifestyle brand. The company is a vertically-integrated company offering beautiful, high-quality luggage at an affordable price point. Away designs special objects for modern travel. It started with luggage, designed with thoughtful features that solve real travel problems—for life. Now all that’s left is the world in front of you and the people you share it with. Because getting Away means getting more out of every trip to come.
Neighborhood Goods
Seed Round in 2018
Neighborhood Goods, Inc. operates a department store that features a diverse array of apparel, accessories, cosmetics, and groceries. Established in 2017 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company provides an evolving selection of brands and products while also creating community spaces for social engagement. Neighborhood Goods offers both in-store and online shopping experiences, allowing customers to explore and purchase a variety of daily use items. The store also hosts events and activities, fostering connections among visitors through immersive content and live discussions.
Choosy
Seed Round in 2018
Choosy is an on-demand social shopping platform where users influence every collection to match their favorite style inspirations. Through social tagging and a team of Style Scouts, Choosy identifies and manufactures trend-driven fashion delivered to shoppers in as little as two weeks. It’s the modern-day equivalent of the ultimate window-shopping experience, creating a new generation of social commerce. All looks are designed and produced in-house, so women sizes 0-20 can get today’s most covetable looks without the ticket price of labels. You see it, you like it, we make it - it’s time to #GetChoosy with your wardrobe.
ShopShops
Seed Round in 2018
ShopShops is a livestream, interactive global shopping marketplace that connects brick and mortar retailers with consumers on their mobile devices. The new digital shopping channel breaks down geographical boundaries for fashion-savvy consumers, enabling them to shop from stores around the world from the palm of their hand. ShopShops was founded by Liyia Wu in 2016 and has headquarters in New York City and Beijing. To learn more, visit www.shopshops.com.cn.
The Inside
Pre Seed Round in 2017
The Inside is a home furnishings brand that specializes in providing a diverse range of products for various styles and budgets. Their offerings include furniture and decor for bedrooms, living rooms, dining areas, outdoor spaces, and offices, along with online interior design services. The product lineup features beds, chairs, lighting, wallpaper, benches, desk chairs, and room dividers. The company emphasizes sustainable practices through a supply chain supported by digital printing and made-to-order manufacturing, allowing customers to personalize their selections with a variety of iconic fabric choices while maintaining affordability.
Packagd
Series A in 2017
Packagd is a series of app that offers new mobile shopping experience. The app curates a wide array of unboxing and product review videos that creators have uploaded to YouTube and puts them together in a way that simulates the same type of live video programming pioneered by the likes of QVC in the ’80s. Packagd was founded by KPCB general partner Eric Feng, a serial entrepreneur who has also served as CTO of companies like Hulu and Flipboard.
Away
Series B in 2017
Away is a modern travel and lifestyle brand. The company is a vertically-integrated company offering beautiful, high-quality luggage at an affordable price point. Away designs special objects for modern travel. It started with luggage, designed with thoughtful features that solve real travel problems—for life. Now all that’s left is the world in front of you and the people you share it with. Because getting Away means getting more out of every trip to come.
Stadium Goods
Series A in 2017
Stadium Goods is an online marketplace for sneakers and apparel with a brick and mortar store in soho, NYC. It is a U.S.-based company doing business globally that was founded in 2015 by John McPheters and Jed Stiller.
Rockets of Awesome
Series A in 2017
Rockets of Awesome is a direct-to-consumer brand specializing in children's apparel. The company offers a subscription model that delivers curated boxes of clothing to parents, allowing them to personalize selections based on their children's preferences. By utilizing technology and data, Rockets of Awesome aims to streamline the shopping experience, enabling parents to provide their children with the freedom to choose from a variety of styles, patterns, and colors. This innovative approach seeks to transform the way parents shop for kids' clothing, emphasizing personalization and exceptional merchandise.
Away
Series A in 2016
Away is a modern travel and lifestyle brand. The company is a vertically-integrated company offering beautiful, high-quality luggage at an affordable price point. Away designs special objects for modern travel. It started with luggage, designed with thoughtful features that solve real travel problems—for life. Now all that’s left is the world in front of you and the people you share it with. Because getting Away means getting more out of every trip to come.
Rockets of Awesome
Seed Round in 2016
Rockets of Awesome is a direct-to-consumer brand specializing in children's apparel. The company offers a subscription model that delivers curated boxes of clothing to parents, allowing them to personalize selections based on their children's preferences. By utilizing technology and data, Rockets of Awesome aims to streamline the shopping experience, enabling parents to provide their children with the freedom to choose from a variety of styles, patterns, and colors. This innovative approach seeks to transform the way parents shop for kids' clothing, emphasizing personalization and exceptional merchandise.
Jet
Venture Round in 2015
Jet is an e-commerce platform that provides a comprehensive shopping experience for its members, allowing them to purchase a diverse range of products across multiple categories. These categories include household items, health and beauty products, groceries, electronics, clothing, and more. Founded in April 2014 by Mark Lore, Mike Hanrahan, and Nate Faust, Jet is headquartered in Hoboken, New Jersey. The platform emphasizes convenience, enabling customers to shop easily and opt for cash on delivery. Since September 2016, Jet has operated as a subsidiary of Walmart, further integrating its services within a larger retail ecosystem.
Hamlet
Convertible Note in 2015
Hamlet is a United States-based company that specializes in personalized home interior decor styling services. The company facilitates its offerings through text communication, allowing clients to discuss their decor needs conveniently. Hamlet assists customers in finding and ordering suitable home furnishings, such as apartment-friendly sofas and unique bar carts, by collaborating directly with leading manufacturers and retailers. The company manages the entire ordering and delivery process at no extra cost beyond the retail price, ensuring a seamless experience for clients. By providing custom recommendations tailored to individual styles and budgets, Hamlet aims to enhance the interior decor of homes while simplifying the shopping experience.
Away
Seed Round in 2015
Away is a modern travel and lifestyle brand. The company is a vertically-integrated company offering beautiful, high-quality luggage at an affordable price point. Away designs special objects for modern travel. It started with luggage, designed with thoughtful features that solve real travel problems—for life. Now all that’s left is the world in front of you and the people you share it with. Because getting Away means getting more out of every trip to come.
Jet
Series B in 2015
Jet is an e-commerce platform that provides a comprehensive shopping experience for its members, allowing them to purchase a diverse range of products across multiple categories. These categories include household items, health and beauty products, groceries, electronics, clothing, and more. Founded in April 2014 by Mark Lore, Mike Hanrahan, and Nate Faust, Jet is headquartered in Hoboken, New Jersey. The platform emphasizes convenience, enabling customers to shop easily and opt for cash on delivery. Since September 2016, Jet has operated as a subsidiary of Walmart, further integrating its services within a larger retail ecosystem.
Bonobos
Series D in 2014
Bonobos, Inc. is a men's clothing brand that specializes in providing a wide range of apparel including pants, shirts, suits, sweaters, outerwear, shoes, and accessories. Founded in 2007, Bonobos initially made a name for itself with its signature line of better-fitting men's pants, and has since grown to become the largest apparel brand established online in the United States. The company offers various categories of clothing such as washed chinos, dress shirts, and casual wear, as well as a selection of accessories like belts, socks, and watches. Bonobos has expanded its presence by launching Guideshops, which provide personalized shopping experiences, and by partnering with major retailers like Nordstrom to increase its distribution. The brand is recognized for its commitment to delivering excellent fit and customer service, contributing to its reputation as a prominent name in menswear. Bonobos operates primarily online, with a physical store located in Seattle and a headquarters in New York City.
PICT
Seed Round in 2013
PICT is a technology platform that transforms ordinary photos into interactive, eCommerce-enabled images. By utilizing PICT's web and mobile applications, users can create shoppable and trackable photos that enhance product discovery. The platform allows brands to effectively blend commerce with visual content, enabling fans and potential customers to instantly learn about the products featured in the images. Additionally, PICT operates a web-content bank that facilitates the direct release of monetizable images to publishers, further streamlining the process for brands to engage with their audience.
Bonobos
Venture Round in 2013
Bonobos, Inc. is a men's clothing brand that specializes in providing a wide range of apparel including pants, shirts, suits, sweaters, outerwear, shoes, and accessories. Founded in 2007, Bonobos initially made a name for itself with its signature line of better-fitting men's pants, and has since grown to become the largest apparel brand established online in the United States. The company offers various categories of clothing such as washed chinos, dress shirts, and casual wear, as well as a selection of accessories like belts, socks, and watches. Bonobos has expanded its presence by launching Guideshops, which provide personalized shopping experiences, and by partnering with major retailers like Nordstrom to increase its distribution. The brand is recognized for its commitment to delivering excellent fit and customer service, contributing to its reputation as a prominent name in menswear. Bonobos operates primarily online, with a physical store located in Seattle and a headquarters in New York City.
Wanelo
Venture Round in 2012
Wanelo, Inc. operates a social media shopping platform that connects users with a vast array of products from over 350,000 stores, including well-known brands and independent boutiques. Founded in 2010 by Deena Varshavskaya, the company is based in San Francisco, California. Wanelo aims to transform the retail experience by enabling users to discover, buy, and sell unique items through a mobile app. The platform allows millions of users to curate and share their favorite products, with tens of thousands of new items posted daily. Wanelo's innovative approach to online shopping seeks to streamline the process by consolidating various stores into one accessible location, making it easier for users to find products that resonate with their individual styles.
Bonobos
Venture Round in 2012
Bonobos, Inc. is a men's clothing brand that specializes in providing a wide range of apparel including pants, shirts, suits, sweaters, outerwear, shoes, and accessories. Founded in 2007, Bonobos initially made a name for itself with its signature line of better-fitting men's pants, and has since grown to become the largest apparel brand established online in the United States. The company offers various categories of clothing such as washed chinos, dress shirts, and casual wear, as well as a selection of accessories like belts, socks, and watches. Bonobos has expanded its presence by launching Guideshops, which provide personalized shopping experiences, and by partnering with major retailers like Nordstrom to increase its distribution. The brand is recognized for its commitment to delivering excellent fit and customer service, contributing to its reputation as a prominent name in menswear. Bonobos operates primarily online, with a physical store located in Seattle and a headquarters in New York City.
Wantful
Series A in 2012
Wantful, a San Francisco, CA- and NYC-based gift-giving service. Founded in 2011 by by designer and serial entrepreneur John Poisson, CEO, the company also expects to make a number of key hires in both its San Francisco and New York City offices in order to grow its engineering, merchandising and operations teams.
Bonobos
Series B in 2010
Bonobos, Inc. is a men's clothing brand that specializes in providing a wide range of apparel including pants, shirts, suits, sweaters, outerwear, shoes, and accessories. Founded in 2007, Bonobos initially made a name for itself with its signature line of better-fitting men's pants, and has since grown to become the largest apparel brand established online in the United States. The company offers various categories of clothing such as washed chinos, dress shirts, and casual wear, as well as a selection of accessories like belts, socks, and watches. Bonobos has expanded its presence by launching Guideshops, which provide personalized shopping experiences, and by partnering with major retailers like Nordstrom to increase its distribution. The brand is recognized for its commitment to delivering excellent fit and customer service, contributing to its reputation as a prominent name in menswear. Bonobos operates primarily online, with a physical store located in Seattle and a headquarters in New York City.
Bonobos
Seed Round in 2009
Bonobos, Inc. is a men's clothing brand that specializes in providing a wide range of apparel including pants, shirts, suits, sweaters, outerwear, shoes, and accessories. Founded in 2007, Bonobos initially made a name for itself with its signature line of better-fitting men's pants, and has since grown to become the largest apparel brand established online in the United States. The company offers various categories of clothing such as washed chinos, dress shirts, and casual wear, as well as a selection of accessories like belts, socks, and watches. Bonobos has expanded its presence by launching Guideshops, which provide personalized shopping experiences, and by partnering with major retailers like Nordstrom to increase its distribution. The brand is recognized for its commitment to delivering excellent fit and customer service, contributing to its reputation as a prominent name in menswear. Bonobos operates primarily online, with a physical store located in Seattle and a headquarters in New York City.
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