In a recent episode of Chew on This, Andrew Curtis, CEO of Clearco, and Michael Zung, Founder and CEO of Bloomist, shared invaluable insights for Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) founders with hosts Ash Melwani and Ron Shah. Whether you’re just starting out or scaling rapidly, their discussion is a must-listen for anyone in the ecommerce space. Let’s discuss a few key takeaways from their conversation on finance, growth, and the innovative ways Clearco is helping brands like Bloomist thrive.

Redefining Finance for DTC Brands

Clearco is redefining the world of ecommerce funding by offering a fast, scalable alternative to traditional financing options. Andrew Curtis explained how Clearco allows brands to obtain capital in as little as 24 hours - a process no traditional bank can match. For DTC brands struggling to balance rapid growth with the need for working capital, Clearco provides a lifeline without the need for founders to give up equity.

“Our goal is really to provide working capital for DTC ecomms that are growing very rapidly. We do that today through our product which is called Invoice Funding Product.”

For many DTC brands, securing funding can be one of the biggest hurdles. Traditional financing options, such as bank loans, are often slow and require collateral or a solid credit history, which many startups lack. This puts growing companies at a disadvantage. Michael Zung shared his own experience of launching Bloomist.

“We started in 2018 as a Direct-to-Consumer business for sustainable home decor. We work with about 90 different artisan partners from both US and overseas. In terms of my own background, I come from a digital marketing background, I started with DoubleClick back in the late 90s [that] became Google… Coming out of the pandemic, of course pretty challenging times… I started looking into alternative financing… Why I like Clearco is it offered a really tidy relationship between purchasing and my financial obligation.”

The Quick Funding Process that Fuels Growth

One of the standout features of Clearco is its streamlined, transparent funding process. Andrew Curtis highlights how easy it is for founders to apply, upload their financials, and receive funding. With its flexible model, Clearco provides predictable, scalable capital that can be used for anything from increasing inventory to boosting marketing efforts.

“Number one, our product, people use it primarily to fund inventory purchases and marketing spend, as well as fulfillment, freight logistics, etc. so we can come in multiple places when you’re putting in an inventory order. We can do it at the front end, we can help finance a deposit, we can finance the balance, or we can finance all of it at the end... What we need is really an invoice. So the way the product works, and this is a little bit different from how certain of our peers work, is we don’t just give you a lump sum of cash. We underwrite you, we have an understanding of what capacity we’re willing to give you.”

Clearco’s model doesn’t just provide quick cash - it sets up brands for long-term growth. By offering transparent terms and a payment structure based on revenue, Clearco helps brands plan for sustainable growth.

Leveraging Clearco’s Capital for Seasonal Sales

Both Andrew Curtis and Michael Zung emphasized the importance of planning ahead for peak sales periods like Black Friday and Cyber Monday. These high-demand seasons require significant capital for inventory, and Clearco’s funding has helped Bloomist stock up to meet their increase in customer demand.

“We’re all gearing up for Black Friday and Cyber Monday right now so I actually have a PO that I’m about to put in to Clearco, maybe even today, so we can stock up, but we just don’t have that capital right now.”

Michael Zung then goes on to walk the listeners through the typical process of applying for increased capital from Clearco and the results achieved. Clearco relies on prompt machine learning models to get their partners the funding they require so that the funds can be available for these seasonal sales.

A Unique Approach to Invoice Funding

Clearco’s dynamic funding model is also tailored to DTC brands that face unpredictable cashflow due to factors like seasonal sales or large marketing invoices. By uploading these invoices, brands can receive immediate funding, helping them avoid cashflow gaps. Andrew Curtis discussed how this approach gives founders greater control over their finances, allowing them to seize opportunities without worrying about liquidity.

“We’ll have customers who are growing very rapidly, they are using us aggressively, we’re deploying a lot of capital into the credits, then they say well now we want to do something different, we want to pivot the business or we want to add this line to the business and that often is a strategic investment or an equity investment… we have one very good example of a customer that makes hats and t-shirts… they are a little bit different in that they actually have a lot of capital investment because they use machines to make the hats and to embroider the hats… so these machines are sophisticated and expensive. The way they think about us is they say, okay, I have a bank that will fund capital equipment purchases and thats what I like to use that bank for but when it comes to marketing spend, I use Clearco, and they just think of us as two different financing sources.”

Final Thoughts

The insights shared by Andrew Curtis and Michael Zung in this episode of Chew on This offer a fresh perspective on how ecommerce brands can thrive in a competitive landscape. From funding strategies to inventory planning, their conversation is packed with actionable advice that every DTC founder can apply.

If you’re a DTC founder looking to scale your business with flexible, transparent funding, tune in to the Chew on This podcast and learn from the experts. Head over to YouTube or Spotify to listen to the full episode and discover how Clearco can help fuel your growth.

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https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/chewonthispodcast/episodes/The-FASTEST-Capital-to-Fund-Your-Business-e2p6gap/a-abifd92