Investment Will Help Modernize the Retail Returns Market and Develop More Sustainable Supply Chains
Washington, D.C. – Optoro Inc., a cloud-based technology company that enables retailers and manufacturers to increase their revenue from returned and excess inventory, today announced that it has closed a $50 million Series C funding. The funding round was led by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB) joined by Generation Investment Management (Generation) with participation from existing investors Revolution Growth, Grotech Ventures and SWaN & Legend Venture Partners. KPCB Partner Daniel Oros will join the board.
Co-founded by Tobin Moore and Adam Vitarello, Optoro works with retailers and manufacturers nationwide to manage and sell their excess and returned inventory. Roughly 15 percent of all goods are either returned or become excess – totaling $500 billion annually in the U.S. and creating a costly logistical and environmental challenge.
“Retailers are missing up to $500 billion in unrealized value for returned or excess goods. This is big,” said KPCB Partner John Doerr, who co-led the investment. “Optoro’s proven cloud platform captures that value for retailers and consumers by efficiently finding new homes — not landfills — for returned goods.”
The Series C funding will enable Optoro to scale major partnerships and expand into new markets, bringing the company’s innovative platform and approach to additional retailers and consumers who will benefit from Optoro’s efficient inventory disposition and marketing engine.
“Since we first invested in Optoro last year, we have seen a major transformation in the way that mainstream retailers approach one of their most costly challenges – managing excess and returned inventory,” said Revolution Growth co–founder and Optoro board member Ted Leonsis. “As Optoro has increasingly gained traction in working with some of the world’s largest retailers, we’re pleased to see the company increasingly recognized as one of the most promising young companies in the country, poised for tremendous growth.”
Optoro leverages its proprietary cloud-based software for optimal channel allocation to sell products simultaneously across over a dozen digital platforms, including eBay, Amazon and Optoro’s own consumer-facing site, BLINQ.com. Using predictive analytics and dynamic pricing, Optoro directly reaches more than 500 million customers worldwide. Their solution delivers superior client results – typically increasing recovery value for returns and excess by 2x – 10x, while also enabling consumers to shop for better bargains online.
“The returns industry is poised to be disrupted by technology and Optoro’s proprietary software and solution is leading the way,” said Tobin Moore, CEO and co-founder of Optoro. “We’re excited to work with KPCB and Generation, whose insight, guidance and investment will be a huge help as we continue to grow, scale and pursue new opportunities.”
Optoro’s business model reflects the company’s commitment to contributing to sustainable commerce and sound environmental stewardship. By selling goods on the secondary market, connecting them to recyclers, or donating items that cannot be resold, the company keeps the products out of landfills and minimizes waste. Optoro also recently announced a partnership with the nonprofit organization Trees for the Future to plant a tree for every order placed on BLINQ.com. Over 100,000 trees have already been planted.
“Our solution is bringing cutting-edge technology to a truly antiquated industry,” added President and co-founder Adam Vitarello. “What’s especially powerful is our win-win-win proposition: Better value for our clients, amazing deals for consumers, and a healthier planet through more efficient use of existing resources.”
About Optoro
Founded in 2008 and located in Washington, DC and Maryland, Optoro’s mission is to be the leading platform for returned and excess inventory, connecting sellers and buyers worldwide. Through its cloud-based, multi-channel selling technology, online remarketing expertise and full suite of business intelligence tools, Optoro offers its clients the optimal solution for managing and selling their returned and excess inventory. For more information, visit www.optoro.com.
About Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB) partners with the brightest entrepreneurs to turn disruptive ideas into world-changing businesses. The firm has helped build pioneering companies like Amazon, Electronic Arts, Genentech, Google, Nest, Netscape, and Twitter. KPCB offers entrepreneurs years of operating experience, puts them at the center of a vast and influential network, and accelerates their success through expertise and support in recruiting, product design and delivery, business development, strategic partnerships, and brand building. KPCB invests in all stages from seed and incubation to growth companies and operates from offices in Menlo Park, San Francisco, Shanghai, and Beijing. For more information, visit https://www.kpcb.com and follow us @kpcb.
About Generation Investment Management
Generation Investment Management LLP (Generation) is dedicated to long-term investing, integrated sustainability research, and client alignment. It is an independent, private, owner-managed partnership established in 2004. With offices in London and New York, Generation takes a long-term investment view, integrating sustainability research within a rigorous fundamental analysis framework. The sustainability research plays an important role in forming its views on the quality of the business, the quality of management and valuation. Generation Investment Management LLP is authorized and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority. For more information visit www.generationim.com
