Windsor Circle steals spotlight in first CED ‘Spotlight’ with $1M funding news

Editor’s note: CED’s Tech Venture is offering a series of “Spotlight” presentations focusing on 18 emerging startups spread across five sectors. Windsor Circle stole the headlines in the ecommerce and marketing panel with news of $1 million in new funding. But as Allan Maurer reports exclusively for WRAL TechWire, five other firms make their case to investors, too. Be sure to check out our photo slideshow of the presentations from WRAL’s Kelly Hinchcliffe.

RALEIGH, N.C. – Windsor Circle, a Durham-based startup that raised $5.25 million in venture-backing just a month ago announced an additional $1 million funding from Chicago-based Origin Ventures at the CED Tech Venture Conference Tuesday.

Matt Williamson told the CED’s startup showcase crowd the additional money brings the firm’s Series B round to $6.25 million. The company sells a “Retention Automation Platform” that makes data-driven marketing “push-button simple” for marketers, according to Wiliamson.

He said, “Big dogs use big data to get big customers,” and his company’s product can give the same advantages to the little guy. The company already has 200 brands, 26 employees and a culture that includes a “Ministry of Shenanigans.”

It won pitch contests at SxSW and Google Demo Days.

Founded in 2011, the company’s investors include Comcast Ventures, IDEA Fund Partners, Triangle Angel Partners, and Steve Case, who founded AOL.
Prior to Windsor Circle’s six-minute presentation, Channel Advisor CEO and co-founder Scot Wingo, a featured speaker at the showcase said e-commerce is really still in its relatively early stages of development and we’re going to see an explosion of third-party marketplaces that bring buyers and sellers together.

That’s exactly what several other startups that presented in the showcase do.

Royalty Exchange’s Expansion

Royalty Exchange, for instance, connects the owners of royalties in music or other work with accredited investors via two-types of auctions. Sean Peace, who founded the company in 2013 with Reggie Calloway, said that its “Next big idea” will revolutionize the way the music business works.

It wants to make it possible for anyone to buy a piece of a royalty stream via a “shelf platform,” so that fans invest not just money in a favorite song or band, but also promote it to their friends and others.

Peace also said the company had inked a partnership one of the largest film distribution payment companies the morning of the Showcase presentation. It sees additional royalty market opportunities in oil and gas, games, and biopharma.

The Raleigh-based company raised a $2 million Series A round in February and has reached $2 million in royalty transactions. The company did not disclose how much it wants to raise in future rounds.

Growing Produce

Both The Produce Box and FilterEasy also connect sellers with buyers.

Courtney Tellefsen created Raleigh-based The Produce Box because her two young children made it difficult for her to shop for fresh produce at a Farmer’s Market. Using an online platform developed in-house, the company delivers fresh local produce to 8,500 families in the Triangle, Triad, Wilmington and Charlotte areas.

The company started with about 25 families in 2007 and now serves about 25,000. Tellefsen told WRAL TechWire she needs capital to expand into additional markets but is not seeking a specific amount. The business model can be duplicated in suburban communities across the U.S., she said.

“We’ve bootstrapped so far,” she said, adding that the company did take out a loan to buy a warehouse.

The Produce Box has created 200 jobs, bought $8 million worth of local produce last year, and has revenues of $6 million last year.

Filters by Subscription

FilterEasy, also based in Raleigh, is a subscription air filter service. Launched in 2013 the firm has raised $850,000 in funding.

Co-founder and CEO Thad Tarkinton said the company is growing rapidly and sending out 1,000 packages a week. He described the problems not changing air filters can cause to heating/cooling systems.

Partnered with Flanders Corp., the largest U.S. air filter maker, Filter Easy offers 45 common filter sizes and delivers them on a 1, 2, or 3 month schedule. He did not disclose how much FilterEasy wants to raise going forward.

Toasting NextGlass

NextGlass, based in Wilmington, featured on WRAL TechWire earlier this month, connects beer and wine drinkers with beverages they’re likely to enjoy using science and software.

It is cataloging the taste profiles of tens of thousands of bottles of wine and beer with the intent of creating “an incredibly accurate” recommendation and discovery engine.

Bargains from Stealz

Stealz, founded in Raleigh in 2012, collaborates with food/beverage and entertainment venues attempting to use social media to raise brand awareness. It sells a smartphone app that tags the venue on social media when the user takes a photo there.

The firm currently has 470 businesses, including 31 McDonald’s, 15 Applebee, and more on the app and more than 45,000 users. It raised a $488,000 seed round in May and seeks additional funding to one million users.

Jim Zidar, co-founder and CEO said the app is effective in boosting brand awareness because it provides “Genuine customer referrals to their friends.”

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