Main Highlights
- Upscribe has secured a $4 million seed round to pursue two macro trends he sees: recurrent purchases of tangible things, and new sectors offering subscriptions.
- Merchants utilize Upscribe’s technology to increase subscriber growth, minimize churn and provide their customers the ability to customize their subscription experience.
- The firm also provides APIs for businesses to combine tools such as Klaviyo, Segment, and Shopify.
- Upscribe provides a cutting-edge user experience by utilizing a quick, single-domain checkout for proper attribution and built-in upsell capabilities and functionality.
Siva’s fourth business and first as a founder is a Los Angeles-based firm, Upscribe develops subscription software for direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailers. He secured a $4 million seed round to pursue two macro trends he sees: recurrent purchases of tangible things, such as consumer packaged goods, and new sectors offering subscriptions, such as automobile and fashion firms.
Merchants utilize Upscribe’s technology to increase subscriber growth, minimize churn and provide their customers the ability to customize their subscription experience by missing shipments, switching out items, and adjusting the order frequency. Products can also be shown for upsell reasons throughout the subscription lifetime, from checkout to post-purchase.
Upscribe also provides APIs for businesses to combine tools such as Klaviyo, Segment, and Shopify — a new checkout subscription option. Upscribe enables e-commerce retailers to use the real potential of subscriptions to go beyond recurrent transactions and create long-term client connections.
Benefits of Using Upscribe
Upscribe provides a cutting-edge user experience by utilizing a quick, single-domain checkout for proper attribution and built-in upsell capabilities and functionality. It also offers a best-in-class account interface for consumers and an admin site for merchants, both of which are built for flexibility and responsiveness on both sides.
Through cohort and customer churn scores, effective cancellation procedures, and built-in email alerts, Upscribe enables merchants to track and minimize attrition. Upscribe makes use of cutting-edge technology designed for scalability, security, and privacy. Our team has more than two decades of e-commerce experience and expertise in assisting next-generation consumer companies in scaling online.
The seed round was headed by Uncork Capital, with participation from Leaders Fund, The House Fund, Roach Capitals’ Fahd Ananta, and Shippo CEO Laura Behrens Wu.
In a written statement, Jeff Clavier, founder and managing partner of Uncork Capital, stated, “As the market for D2C subscriptions grows, there is a demand for subscription-first firms to expand and scale their businesses.” “We have spent a significant amount of time in the e-commerce space, working with D2C brands and companies that are solving common industry pain points, and Upscribe’s merchant-centric approach raised the bar for subscription services, addressing friction in customer experiences and enabling merchants to engage subscribers and scale recurring revenue.”
Siva bootstrapped the firm, but as Upscribe sought to build a more merchant-centric strategy, which necessitated expanding with a larger staff, he opted to seek venture capital funding. He went on to say that the “true diamonds are in the data layer and how to make the experience exceptional.”
How will the funds be used?
According to Siva, the company is increasing 43 percent quarter over quarter and is nearly profitable, with the majority of its revenue coming from recommendations. It already works with customers such as Athletic Greens, Four Sigmatic, and True Botanicals, and in a variety of industries such as food and beverage, health and wellness, beauty and cosmetics, and home care.
He said that the fresh funds will be used to “capture the next wave of businesses that are going to grow.” According to Siva, the DTC subscription industry is anticipated to reach $478 billion by 2025, with 75 percent of those businesses offering subscriptions within the following two years. As a result, the majority of the funds will be utilized to hire more people, particularly in the product, customer success, and go-to-market roles.
Though there is competition in the sector, many of them are focused on transaction processing, according to Siva, whereas Upscribe’s strategy is client connections. The cost of recruiting new consumers is increasing, and subscription services will be critical in turning one-time purchasers into loyal customers.
“Really, it’s about client connections and continual interaction between businesses and subscribers,” he continued. “We are now living on a different planet. The initial wave may be able to play the Facebook game, advertising on social media with extremely low acquisition and scalability. That is not the case any longer.”
