New York, Oct. 20, 2021 — Clyde, a product lifecycle platform, today announced it has raised $41M, including $25M in Series B funding and $16M in working capital, to enable merchants to create product lifecycle programs that grow revenue and drive loyalty. The funding round was led by Headline, with participation from Vulcan, Spark Capital, Crosslink and other leading investors.
Clyde was founded in 2017 after Brandon Gell, the company’s founder and CEO, learned firsthand that the extended warranty process was broken, both for merchants and consumers. In 2018, Clyde launched its core offering, an extended warranty product that allows merchants to easily sell protection plans, drive revenue and deliver unbeatable customer experiences. The platform now also includes a unified claims management tool for merchants to handle all customer and product issues, regardless of whether or not they own a protection plan.
With the funding, Clyde plans to further its vision of helping merchants maximize the performance of their product lifecycle programs and the longevity of their customer relationships, while enabling customers to unlock the full value of the products they buy. Clyde will expand its GDPR and CCPA-compliant platform so merchants can identify and build direct relations with customers, even when they purchase through third parties. This will provide merchants with a better understanding of their products and customers, while driving higher attachment rates and more revenue. Additionally, Clyde will leverage the funding to fuel its expansion into new markets and categories, beginning with hiring new talent and scaling internationally.
“When we launched our extended warranty solution, it was always our intent to use that as a foundation for our complete product lifecycle platform,” said Gell. “The funding will enable us to execute on this vision. We’ve already proven we have the tools to do this by helping merchants drive an extended warranty attachment rate that is 4x the industry average. We will continue to build on this success as we reshape what it means for merchants to engage with consumers throughout a product’s lifecycle.”
Clyde’s Product and Team Solves Critical Need
The $41M funding round was led by Headline, which recognized Clyde’s forethought in solving a major pain point for both merchants and consumers.
“Looking at the market, there is an inherent gap in the product lifecycle — where the purchase of a product and the post-purchase experience of that product are disconnected,” said Mathias Schilling, co-founder and managing partner, Headline. “By building out a complete product that addresses this void, Clyde is solving a critical need for everyone involved in the transaction. That vision and the company’s incredible team are just two of the reasons we are excited to partner and invest in Clyde.”
Leading Merchants Turn to Clyde to Improve Product Lifecycle Programs
Today, Clyde has partnered with more than 300 brands and retailers who trust Clyde to improve their product lifecycle programs. Merchants using Clyde’s extended warranty solution see an 18% average attachment rate — the frequency at which consumers purchase extended warranties for eligible items. Clyde’s expansive customer list spans a number of industries and verticals, including consumer and household electronics, scooters and e-bikes, furniture and mattresses, appliances and hardware, fitness and sporting equipment, and jewelry and watch brands.
Movado, one of the world’s premier watchmakers, which has earned more than 100 patents and 200 international awards for artistry, design and innovation since 1881, is helping its customers keep their treasured purchases safe through Clyde’s product protection offering.
“Our customers are looking for beautiful and innovative watches that are timeless and commemorate special milestones in life,” said Margot Grinberg, VP ecommerce, Movado Group. “We partnered with Clyde to provide our customers with the peace of mind they’re looking for. The technology allowed us to launch the service quickly and offers a great user experience, which helps us provide value to our customers while driving loyalty.”
TTI Floor Care, the largest floorcare business in North America and the parent company behind iconic brands Hoover, Dirt Devil and Oreck, has partnered with Clyde to leverage its complete product lifecycle platform. With Clyde, TTI Floor Care can ensure its customers don’t have to worry about what happens when an issue arises with a product, no matter where it was purchased.
“When we first engaged with Clyde, we were looking for an extended warranty solution that would drive additional revenue, keep our customers happy and was easy to use,” said Mike Bloom, director of digital development, TTI Floor Care. “After learning about Clyde, we recognized that its complete product lifecycle platform would provide us so much more — allowing us to connect with all of our customers, no matter if they bought our products directly from one of our brands or through a third party. We’ve already gone live with the Clyde platform for the Hoover brand and are quickly seeing customer benefits as well as incremental revenue as a result.”
To learn more about how Clyde enables merchants to create product lifecycle programs that grow revenue and drive loyalty, visit joinclyde.com.
About Clyde
Clyde’s product lifecycle platform helps merchants maximize the longevity of their customer relationships, and enables customers to unlock the full value of the products they buy. Clyde allows merchants of all sizes to offer an exceptional customer experience and peace of mind when customers need you most — when something goes wrong. Leading merchants taking advantage of the Clyde platform include Ergatta, Molekule, Hydrow, Movado, Chili, VAIO, Tuft & Needle, Barnes & Noble, and Palm. To learn more about, visit www.joinclyde.com.
About Headline
Headline is a global venture capital firm that uses its own technology and international team to discover — and invest in — the world’s boldest outliers. With $2B of assets under management, Headline is composed of a network of four regionally-focused early stage funds in the US, Europe, Brazil, and Asia and an Early Growth fund that invests worldwide. Since its founding in 1999, Headline has proudly worked alongside Founders from Jacksonville to São Paulo, from marketplaces to SaaS. Its portfolio includes Acorns, AppFolio, Bumble, Cameo, Farfetch, Gopuff, The RealReal, Segment, Sonos, Sorare and Yeahka, among others. Learn more at Headline.com and https://twitter.com/HeadlineVC.