Forerunner Ventures, the early-stage venture capital firm known for its consumer focus, has raised a new fund in the middle of the pandemic.
Known for its bets on the likes of Glossier, Warby Parker, and Birchbox, Forerunner raised $500 million for its fifth fund in a process that began during the heat of the pandemic in May—a 39% increase in size compared to the $360 million it raised for its fourth fund in 2018.
Investors early on expected consumer-focused businesses to be at the frontlines of this economic downturn. Unlike in 2008, the pandemic has hit Main Street more than the banks, with unemployment skyrocketing in April to its highest level since 1940: 14.7%. With states and economies reopening, that figure dropped to 11.1% in June—though nervousness around some states’ resurgences in COVID-19 numbers could derail the recovery.
The pandemic has created a bifurcation with consumer-facing startups. Away, the luggage company backed by Forerunner, has struggled with travel shutdowns, while telehealth and online grocers, for example, have soared during the crisis.
“Being in the travel sector, for example, puts Away in the eye of the storm,” Forerunner’s Kirsten Green
told Term Sheet in early April. “On the flipside, in a lot of consumer-focused businesses that are online-only, they have candidly not seen weakness yet.”
A Forerunner spokesperson said its newest fund will continue to make investments in ecommerce, health, “financial independence, empowering workforces, and durable supply chains.”
In a nod to what’s to come, Forerunner and actress Gwyneth Paltrow recently announced an investment in Real, a mental health startup that gives members access to therapy for areas such as body image, miscarriage, or sexuality rather than the more common categories of anxiety and depression.
Is A.I. actually A.I.: As a journalist, I get pitched on the buzziest of buzzes. In 2017, it was bitcoin and blockchain. And no doubt, during the 2000s, it was the dot com bubble. While all these technologies are hugely promising (as I write this on a website that you read via the internet), it’s an unending process of trying to vet which companies are actually real and which are not.
A.I. is perhaps among the most pervasive pitches to land in my inbox—it seems as if I’ve received one a day, at least, since the beginning of time. Certainly some companies are making a mark, but it stands to question which ones are exaggerating their use of the technology. Forbes has recently written of ScaleFactor, an AI accounting company that shut down blaming the coronavirus, detailing that the company had problems even before the virus hit—among which included using humans for much of its work.
In response to requests for comment from the Forbes writer, ScaleFactor wrote that his emailed questions were “filled with numerous factual inaccuracies and misrepresentations.” Read more.
Lucinda Shen
Twitter: @shenlucinda
Email: lucinda.shen@fortune.com
VENTURE DEALS
- Gett, a London and Israel-based company ride-hailing company, raised $100 million. Investors were not disclosed. Read more.
- Taranis, a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based agricultural company, raised $30 million in Round C funding. Vertex Growth and Kuok Group’s Orion Fund led the round. New investors in this round include Hitachi Ventures, Mitsubishi UFJ Capital, Micron Ventures, UMC Capital, La Maison, Mindset Ventures, iAngels and Gal Yarden.
- Insider, a Singapore-based multichannel experience orchestration company, raised $32 million in Series C funding. Riverwood Capital led the round and was joined by investors including Sequoia India, Wamda, and Endeavor Catalyst.
- Afresh Technologies, a San Francisco-based AI-based supply chain platform for grocers, raised $12 million in Series A funding. Innovation Endeavors led the round and was joined by investors including Food Retail Ventures, Maersk Growth, Impact Engine, and existing investor Baseline Ventures.
- Smol, a London-based detergent-to-your-door brand, raised £8 million in Series A funding. Balderton Capital led the round and was joined by investors including JamJar Investments.
- Sprout, a San Francisco-based platform for seeking autism care, raised $10 million in seed funding from investors including General Catalyst, Bling Capital, and Felicis Ventures.
- MeetElise, a New York-based leasing agent software, raised $6.5 million in Series A funding. Navitas Capital led the round.
- Joywell Foods, a David, Calif.-based food technology company developing a sweet protein portfolio, raised $6.9 million in Series A funding. Evolv Ventures, a venture fund backed by Kraft Heinz, led the round and was joined by investors including Khosla Ventures, SOSV, and Alumni Ventures Group.
- Roundtrip, a Philadelphia-based digital healthcare transportation company, raised $4 million in funding from Motley Fool Ventures, ZOLL Medical Corp., UH Ventures, and Grays Ferry Capital.
- Ready, Set, Food!, a Los Angeles-based childhood food allergy prevention company, raised $3 million in a second funding round led by Danone Manifesto Ventures, Mark Cuban, and AF Ventures.
- Readout Health, a St. Louis-based digital metabolic biomarker startup, raised $2.2 million in seed funding. iSelect Funds led the round.
PRIVATE EQUITY
- Hunter Street Partners alongside Healy Capital Partners invested in Ark Behavioral Health, an owner and operator of substance use disorders treatment facilities in the Northeastern U.S. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Leonard Green & Partners invested in WellSky, an Overland Park, Texas-based health and community care technology company backed by TPG Capital. TPG will also make a new investment in WellSky. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Thoma Bravo will acquire Majesco (NASDAQ: MJCO), a Morristown, N.J.-based cloud insurance software firm, in a take-private transaction valuing the company at $594 million.
- Datto, backed by Vista Equity Partners, has acquired Gluh, an Australian platform for product information, search, and quoting. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Eze Castle Integration, a portfolio company of H.I.G. Capital, has acquired Alphaserve Technologies, a provider of infrastructure technology. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Briggs & Stratton, a Milwaukee-based oil-and-gas firm, agreed to sell its assets to KPS Capital Partners for $550 million amid a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.
- I&I Sales Group, backed by Osceola Capital, acquired Apex Reps, a Chicago-based outsourced sales and marketing services for janitorial and sanitation manufacturers. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
OTHERS
- GSK (NYSE: GSK) will acquire a 10% stake in CureVac, a German biotech company working on Covid-19, for 130 million pounds ($163.67 million). Read more.
- JW Therapeutics acquired Eureka Therapeutics’ China subsidiary, Syracuse Biopharma, which included antibody TCR and solid tumor technology for exclusive use in China and the ASEAN countries. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
BREAKUPS, HANGUPS, AND BANKRUPTCIES
- Bruin E&P Partners, a Houston-based oil and gas producer backed by ArcLight, filed for bankruptcy. Read more.
- BJ Services, an oilfield services firm, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Read more.
IPOS
- Ant Group, Alibaba’s fintech arm, started its dual listing in Hong Kong and on Shanghai’s Star Market. Earlier reports suggested the firm was targeting a valuation of $200 billion. Read more.
- Gores Holdings V, a Beverly Hills, Calif.-based blank check company formed by The Gores Group, filed to raise $400 million. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “GRSVU.” Read more.
- Jamf, a Minneapolis-based Apple device management company, plans to raise $352 million in an offering of 16 million shares (16% insider) priced between $21 to $23. It posted revenue of $204 million in 2019 and a loss of $32.6 million. Vista Equity backs the firm. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “JAMF.” Read more.
- Yucaipa Acquisition, a Los Angeles based-based blank check company founded by private equity firm The Yucaipa Companies, filed to raise $300 million. It plans to list on the NYSE. Read more.
EXITS
- CGE Partners acquired Enhesa, a Brussels-based environmental, health and safety compliance intelligence platform, from Waterland Private Equity. Read more.
F+FS
- TPG is $4 billion for TPG Growth V. Read more.
PEOPLE
- CC Capital Partners appointed Matthew Skurbe as a senior managing director, chief financial officer, and chief operating officer.