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Sydney-based startup Instant, which operates an all-in-one retention marketing platform for the e-commerce sector, has hit a $100 million valuation after securing $18 million in a Series A capital raising led by UK-based Hummingbird Ventures.
The capital raise follows a strong run of growth by Instant which over the past six months has boosted annual recurring revenue (ARR) to $1 million per month and is currently growing at a rate of more than $1 million a month.
Instant was founded in 2021 by Liam Millward and William Gao, who were aged just 17 and 19 respectively at the time. The company has since developed a reputation for achieving significantly higher conversion rates at the checkout for e-commerce platforms than the “generic checkout experience”.
The Series A capital raising, which was also backed by Blackbird, TEN13 and Reinventure, will be used by Instant to scale internationally and boost its automation technology to drive revenue for online brands.
“Ninety-eight per cent of ecommerce visitors leave without making a purchase - most brands have no idea who they are,” says Millward, the CEO of Instant.
“Instant changes that. By unlocking lost shoppers and converting them into loyal customers, Instant drives repeat revenue at scale”.
The platform is said to “intelligently trigger emails at the precise moment shoppers abandon their carts” which helps automate retention marketing.
Instant has recently expanded from a single tool to a full-fledged suite, with hundreds of ecommerce brands worldwide, such as July Luggage, Peppermayo, Fayt the Label, Toys R Us and STAX, using Instant as their go-to retention engine.
Some customers, such as The Collagen Co, have added more than $1 million in revenue in just 12 months through Instant’s platform.
“Our growth has exploded over the past year, taking our revenue from zero to $1 million ARR in just six months,” says Millward, who along with Gao were among the finalists in the 2024 Sydney Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards.
“We’re adding over $1 million in revenue every single month, and this fundraise allows us to grow even faster, by accelerating product development and continuing our focus on self-service capabilities, which are critical for scaling in North America.”
Hummingbird Ventures’ investment in Instant is the UK venture capital firm’s first in Australia with the group noting the platform’s potential to “redefine e-commerce”.
“The founders embody the relentless drive and ingenuity we seek, with a clear focus on solving a critical challenge for digital brands,” says Akshay Mehra, the APAC lead investor at Hummingbird Ventures.
“We’re proud that this marks Hummingbird’s first investment in Australia and believe Instant is the perfect partner to kick off our journey in the region."
All existing investors, including Blackbird, TEN13 and Reinventure, have doubled down for the third time with the latest Series A round.
“This fundraise comes off the back of an impressive year for Instant,” says Max Meyer, principal at Blackbird.
“The team's combination of blistering speed and steadfast vision has seen them deliver a brand-new product that customers love in less than 12 months.
“It’s one of the fastest-growing products we have seen at Blackbird. We're excited to continue supporting Liam, Will and the Instant team's vision to become the world's first end-to-end automated marketing manager.”
Instant has aggressive expansion plans in motion and is growing its team across product and engineering to sustain its momentum.
The company expects to triple revenue growth and headcount again this year as it continues to roll out new features and automation capabilities globally.
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