DFJ Esprit has partnered with Silicon Valley Bank to lead a Series B funding transaction for technology company SportPursuit.
The business, which operates a flash sales platform for customers looking to purchase sports products, has added £5 million through the deal.
Through its platform of 600 brands, SportPursuit sells goods made by Garmin, GoPro and Helly Hansen.
Joining the venture capital-led funding round are a number of well-known angel investors such as Zoopla founder Alex Chesterman and LOVEFiLM co-founder William Reeve.
Adam Pikett, CEO and co-founder of SportPursuit, comments, ‘Flash sales are the perfect way to inspire people to discover, try and fall in love with great brands and products that they wouldn’t have found otherwise.
‘We are creating new demand and growing the market. £9 out of £10 spent on our site is incremental; it’s on products that people would not have discovered otherwise that day.’
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SportPursuit will now be embarking on growth in Scandinavia and mainland Europe, as well as expanding the brands and products it sells online.
Prior to leading the Series B investment, DFJ Esprit was the venture capital firm behind the company’s Series A transaction in May 2012.
Krishna Visvanathan, partner at DFJ Esprit, adds, ‘We first backed the SportPursuit team in their early days.
‘They have gone on to build a market-leading position very quickly and have tremendous growth opportunities ahead.’
Since setting up in 2011, SportPursuit has grown to a position where it now has one million members and has shipped to 40 countries.
Pikett says that SportPursuit’s position as an online data-driven venture means that it can ‘give each member something new, relevant and interesting every day’ – which allows brands to use its service to grow.
