Wholesale Marketplace Abound Nets $36.7M Round
Summary
Founded by Niklas de la Motte, Bill Shope and Drew Sfugaras in 2019 and headquartered in New York City, Abound finds and supports creative brands in the U.S. and the U.K. The startup also provides independent retailers with support and solutions to compete with physical stores and eCommerce giants. “Demand for a modern wholesale platform is at an all-time high with skilled workers leaving large companies to bet on themselves as retail and product entrepreneurs,” said Shope, who serves as the CEO of Abound. This funding round is validation that some of the best investors in the world share our vision that small businesses will lead the transformation of wholesale,” he said. Abound’s marketplace has more than 400,000 products available, plus an active network of more than 40,000 retailers across the U.S. and the U.K. “As longtime investors in online marketplaces, we believe the wholesale commerce and trade show space, which is large and highly fragmented, will benefit from Abound’s innovative online model,” said Edwin Jager, managing director and head of fundamental equities for the D. E. Shaw group.