Marketworks, a provider of sales automation software and marketing services, plans to expand its growth initiatives now that it has $7 million in new funding.
Council Ventures, a venture firm based in Nashville TN, led the new round. Other existing Marketworks investors, such as Crosslink Capital, also participated.
Marketworks, which was launched with the name Auctionworks in 1999, has now raised $12 million in venture capital. It is a certified solution provider for eBay and also works with Overstock.com.
The company is still searching for a new chief executive officer. Alec Peters, its founder and CEO, stepped down earlier this year.
“The additional financing will greatly accelerate these and other strategic initiatives currently underway,” said Doug Hadaway, Marketworks’ president and chief financial officer, referring to growth plans.
The financing is “a strong testament to our remarkable growth in customers and revenues, but more importantly, to our future opportunities,” he added. “Over the past year, we’ve been developing some truly ground-breaking product functionality that will allow us to continue setting the standard for marketplace management.”
Marketworks has more than 4,000 customers spread across 37 countries. They sell more than $30 million in merchandise each month, utilizing Marketworks services to sell in online auctions, comparison shopping sites and other outlets.
Among its customers are Disney Auctions LLC, Olympus America, Vodafone and Hewlett-Packard.
“We are impressed by Marketworks’ proven ability to help customers grow their online businesses,” said Gary Peat, a partner at Council Ventures. “We believe they have the right combination of technology and marketing services to create significant value for online merchants globally.”
The company operates offices in the United Kingdom, Australia and Germany.
Marketworks: www.marketworks.com
