Saskatoon, CANADA, May 27, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Vendasta today announced C$119.5 million in financing to further accelerate the sales growth of its end-to-end ecommerce platform for companies who provide digital products and services to small and medium businesses (SMBs) worldwide.
The raise is led by New York-based Lugard Road Capital, joined by Nicola Wealth, the Canadian Business Growth Fund (CBGF), and a set of existing investors. It is the largest information and communication technology (ICT) venture capital round in Canadian Prairie history. The record was previously set by Vendasta in 2019 when it secured a $40 million growth fund.
Vendasta experienced strong growth through 2020 and 2021 as COVID-19 accelerated the adoption of digital technology by small businesses. With annual recurring revenue of more than $50 million and a reach of five million SMBs, the company intends to use the funds to further accelerate its pace of growth.
“Vendasta is solving some of the biggest challenges facing businesses today. The majority of SMBs are struggling to purchase, implement, and use technology solutions. Our platform is quickly becoming the de facto operating system for both small businesses and the technology providers serving them,” said Vendasta CEO Brendan King. “This investment allows us to accelerate our timeline to completely redefine and democratize the way technology, software, and services are delivered to SMBs.”
“We are thrilled to be partnering with the Vendasta team as they continue to revolutionize how SMBs discover, access, purchase, and ultimately interact with software to better their businesses,” said Doug Friedman, Partner at Lugard Road Capital.
“We see Vendasta being very well-positioned to continue to grow and adapt in an ever-changing environment,” added Kazuki Nohdomi, Portfolio Manager at Nicola Wealth. “Considering the secular shift to digital marketing and ecommerce, and the need for small business owners to take advantage of that, we feel this is a great opportunity that fits well in our diversified portfolio.”
Vendasta is a leading technology company in Western Canada. Based in Saskatoon, it employs more than 500 people and plans to hire up to 150 employees in the coming year.
CIBC Capital Markets, TD Securities Inc., and National Bank Financial Inc. acted as financial advisors to the company on the financing.
About Vendasta
At Vendasta, our core purpose is to drive local economies by democratizing technology for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). We accomplish this by providing a robust platform to local experts around the world—our channel partners. Partners use Vendasta’s technology to market, sell, bill, fulfill, and deliver digital solutions to their SMB clients. Our end-to-end platform and marketplace are tightly integrated into an operating system delivered to SMBs, providing a single sign-on to their digital products and analytics. Vendasta serves 50,000+ channel partners, who in turn work with more than five million SMBs worldwide. Sign up for free and explore Vendasta at www.vendasta.com.
About Lugard Road Capital
Lugard Road Capital is a multi-billion dollar global investment fund primarily focused on public and private companies in the internet, software, consumer, and technology sectors.
About Nicola Wealth
Nicola Wealth is a wealth management firm dedicated to serving the complex needs of high-net-worth families, entrepreneurs, and professionals. Today, the firm operates offices across Canada advising institutions, multi-generational families, and accomplished individuals of all professions and backgrounds. Nicola Wealth manages over C$9.7 billion in assets under management (AUM), investing in a wide range of asset classes including but not limited to hard-asset real estate, private equity, private debt, commercial mortgages, and more. For more information, please visit www.nicolawealth.com.
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Vendasta Facts:
- Founded: 2008
- Expansion Stage
- Private company
- Headquarters: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
- Employees: 525+
- 50,000+ registered channel partners (direct customers)
- 5,000,000 small and medium business (SMB) clients
- Short description: Vendasta is an end-to-end commerce platform for local experts who market, sell, bill, fulfill, and deliver digital solutions to small and medium businesses.
- Preferred describer: End-to-end ecommerce platform
- Vendasta’s channel partners are most often: Marketing/advertising/web agencies, media companies, managed service providers (MSPs), independent software vendors (ISVs), and value-added resellers (VARs).
- Platform features for channel partners: Marketing automation, CRM, order and billing management, payments and collections, fulfillment management, and wholesale solutions marketplace
- Current solutions categories in Vendasta’s wholesale marketplace: Advertising, content & experience, insurance, listings, reputation, SEO, social, website.
