In today’s fast-paced business landscape, opportunities and challenges emerge at lightning speed for ecommerce brands trying to stay competitive. To keep up with this pace, it’s critical for businesses to respond to market shifts, capitalize on new opportunities, and manage their strategies for growth. With traditional funding solutions like banks and venture capitalists (VC’s) abiding by bureaucratic approaches for approving working capital access, it’s key that brands in high-growth stages have efficient access to cash flow. Alternate fast funding partners like Clearco meet these businesses needs by providing swift access to working capital - allowing ecommerce brands to seize opportunities quickly, scale operations, and stay agile in a competitive market.

Why Speed Matters More Than Ever

In today’s dynamic market, ecommerce brands are under pressure to scale rapidly to remain competitive. Achieving this requires significant investment in growth-focused operations, such as expanding marketing efforts, increasing inventory, optimizing supply chains, or hiring additional employees. Access to capital is often the key to driving these strategies forward, but when funding is limited, ecommerce businesses can find themselves constrained, and risk losing out to more nimble competitors. 

When ecommerce businesses need to act swiftly with their decision making and funding choices, traditional equity financing options don’t always align with the demands of their agility. Access to capital remains a significant challenge for ecommerce brands, with 16% of small business owners reporting lack of capital to be their leading challenge in 2024. All while the global ecommerce market is rapidly scaling, expected to reach $6.3 trillion this year - and $8.1 trillion by 2026. With such fast demand and competition on the rise, ecommerce brands are under pressure now more than ever to remain agile and adapt to market changes in order to grow their business. Any delays in investments to drive these strategies forward has huge financial and operational consequences on the business, leading to stagnant growth and impacting business survival.

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Traditional Funding Sources are Falling Short

Conventional sources of funding such as banks and VCs don’t always make it easy for ecommerce businesses to access capital when looking to expand. In fact, these funding sources traditionally pose significant challenges to brands that ultimately end in delays to their business growth.

Lengthy Approval Times

Securing funding through traditional channels like banks and VC firms can be a time-intensive process. These traditional institutions often require extensive documentation, such as detailed financial statements and projections, future business plans, and market analysis, which can delay funding approvals. Funding applications undergo rigorous underwriting and multiple rounds of due diligence to ensure the investment's viability. For instance, VC due diligence alone can take months. For ecommerce brands, any delays caused by missing documentation, poor credit scores, or even loan denial, can stall critical growth strategies and impact business expansion amid market competitiveness.

Burdened in Paperwork

Many funding approval processes consist of compiling financial, legal, tax, and asset documentation to prove the investment is worth pursuing. When it comes to VCs and banks, the more detailed the documentation, and the further back it goes, the better. Ecommerce brands will find themselves chasing paperwork to compile the checklist of information required by these institutions to show the legitimacy of the business’s success and projected growth to secure funding. Once approved, traditional banking loans can take weeks or months for the funds to process into your account, with SBA loans taking anywhere from 30 to 90 days to receive funds. Valuable time spent assembling bank and VC requests is ultimately time lost that could be better used driving expansion efforts.

Loss of Control 

Traditional funding solutions like VCs often require companies to relinquish a portion of control of their business in exchange for investment. VC firms commonly seek influence over key decisions, such as securing a seat on the Board of Directors, to guide the company's strategic direction. While this partnership provides early-stage funding, it often reduces ecommerce brands autonomy over their operations and decision-making processes.

Advantages of Partnering with a Fast Funding Partner

Brands looking to launch new products, scale operations, or who encounter unexpected expenses, find themselves hindered by slow funding processes. However, missed opportunities due to lack of funding does not have to be a reality for many ecommerce brands. Alternate working capital partners step in to provide fast and flexible funding options, making it easier to access cash flow with quicker approval times and minimal paperwork.

With only 40% of small business owners believing their current cash flow can keep their operations running for 6 months, fast funding partners are proving to be a lifeblood for ecommerce sustainability and growth. Alternate funding partners are quickly gaining traction and are highly sought out by ecommerce brands looking to scale quickly. A staggering 40% of banks have already lost 5% of their market share to fintechs and this number is projected to rise as the flexibility and swiftness of working capital partners, like Clearco, continue to digitally disrupt the market.

Ecommerce businesses can now gain access to funding in as little as 24 hours, ensuring they can thrive in the competitive market and seize opportunities as they arise. Clearco’s Invoice Funding and Receipt Funding empower businesses to scale now, and pay later. By creating a profile with Clearco’s intuitive platform, ecommerces can discover their funding capacity and eligible monthly amount to fund their business fast. Brands can confidently plan their growth strategies with transparency, thanks to capped weekly payments and no hidden costs. With over $2.5 billion invested into 10,000 businesses, Clearco is committed to being your fast funding partner - discover how you can get funded now.