Los Angeles-based livestream commerce company talkshoplive (TSL) announced Thursday the completion of a $6 million seed extension, bringing the fast-growing startup to $10.5 million raised in total. The new round of funding was led by Raine Group, the venture capital arm of TMT-focused venture capital firm Raine Ventures, as well as by a group of angel investors in the entertainment and retail industries.
“We could not be more excited and grateful to be joining with Raine,” said Bryan Moore, co-founder and CEO of talkshoplive. “Raine’s experience in evolving consumer trends to mainstream global behaviors is both differentiated and is the perfect match for TSL’s next phase of growth.”
TSL plans on using the additional seed money to help grow the business through the expansion of the company’s embeddable player network, the scaling of product management and technical teams and the operationalization of increased demand from sellers and customers worldwide.
From livestreams to revenue streams
The move comes as the phenomenon of livestream shopping continues to grow in popularity. In the U.S. alone, livestream shopping is expected to bring in $6 billion this year and a staggering $25 billion by 2023. Popshop Live, another competitor in the livestream commerce space, also announced Thursday that it had received about $20 million in funding, signaling strong interest in the industry from investors.
“Our team has closely watched the development of live commerce in the U.S. and reviewed a number of different strategies in the space,” said Gordon Rubenstein, managing partner of Raine Ventures. “We believe that talkshoplive has a differentiated technology and strategy that will continue to drive adoption of live commerce.”
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Even the biggest brands, including Walmart, Amazon and Gucci, are experimenting with livestreamed sales, but TSL’s service assists retailers large and small. In June, the company launched its product with Hearst and Conde Nast in collaboration with Oprah Daily and Bon Appetit, bringing in thousands of viewers to each event. Even celebrities ranging from Howie Mandel to Julie Andrews are active on the platform.
But TSL is available to any brand, not just the rich and famous. On the company website, TSL markets itself to “everyone, from entrepreneurs to home chefs, budding fitness gurus or the average social media user.”
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