Custora Scoops $13.75 Million Series B to Usher New Path in AI-Driven Digital Commerce

Customer Analytics Software Provider Uses Ai Technology to Drive Revenue and Lifetime Value for Today’s Top Retailers

Today, Custora, the leading customer analytics platform for retail, announced $13.75 Million in Series B funding led by General Catalyst with participation from existing investors Foundation Capital and Greycroft.

Custora helps retailers – including 7 out of the top 20 retailers in the U.S. – grow revenue and increase customer lifetime value (CLV) by making better use of AI-driven customer insights.

At the time of this announcement, Corey Pierson, Co-founder and CEO of Custora, said, “Consumers are changing fast, and keeping up is tough.”

Corey added, “The leading retail brands are building the capabilities to better understand their customers and use those insights in new and exciting ways. We call this ‘Customer-Obsessed Commerce’ and Custora was built to help companies make this transformation. We’re excited to partner with General Catalyst in this new era of retail.”

Custora’s software unifies data from disparate sources, automatically creates rich AI-powered predictive analysis (e.g., lifetime value, personas), and then puts those analytics to use across every internal team and customer touchpoint. Retailers use Custora to acquire higher value customers, personalize online and offline communications, and solve big retail challenges like one-time buying and over-reliance on promotions.

The National Retail Federation (NRF) recently announced that it expects 2018 retail sales to increase. Higher wages, gains in disposable income, and a strong job market have all set the stage for retail growth.

While retail sales appear to be solid, competition and customer expectations have never been higher. According to Deloitte, winning and retaining customers in the digital era requires a mix of personalization, relevance, exclusivity, and engagement across in-store and e-commerce. Today’s top retailers are building capabilities in machine learning helping them with the better understanding of customer feedback and make smart product recommendations.

“The death of retail has been grossly exaggerated. But, the penalty for ignoring data-driven customer insights will be high in the ultra-competitive retail environment,” said Larry Bohn, managing director at General Catalyst Partners.

Larry added, “We’re seeing thriving retailers use Custora’s platform to delight individual shoppers and better engage consumer cohorts. This is a team that’s getting it done in retail and we’re excited to have this opportunity to invest in them.”

Custora works with both small and large retail brands including J.Crew, Tiffany & Co, Uniqlo, and Kenneth Cole.

“At Kenneth Cole, our inspiration has always been driven by our unique and diverse consumer base,” said TJ Papp, VP of Digital and eCommerce at Kenneth Cole.

TJ added, “Creating a connection for shoppers who purchase our products inspires customer loyalty and success. Custora has been a valuable partner in deepening our customer analytics capabilities and creating a superior experience for today’s shoppers.

Custora will be hosting its annual user conference, CARMA, on 4 October. Taking place at City Winery in New York City, the conference gives retail practitioners an opportunity to connect and learn from their peers, offering a mix of powerful customer-focused workshops and presentations from customer-obsessed retailers including Kendra Scott, Lucky Brand, The Bouqs Company and FullBeauty Brand.