NeoCarta Ventures Leads Series B Financing Round To Fuel Retail Firm's Network of 40 Square Foot, Robotic Retail Stores That Put Brands Directly in Path of Consumers
Former Mervyn's CFO Creasey Joins Dynamic, experienced retail team at Zoom
SAN FRANCISCO – Jul. 19, 2005 – ZoomSystems announced today it has closed a $12 million Series B financing round led by NeoCarta Ventures that will speed deployment of the company's network of 40 square foot robotic stores that place iconic brands and high demand products directly in the path of consumers.
The company's "state-of-the-art" robotic stores are located in high traffic areas and use technology to provide consumers simplicity, speed and easy access to products. These sleek retail stores prominently display up to 150 different products behind glass. Shoppers select products via an easy to use touch screen graphic interface, finalize purchases with a credit or debit card and receive products immediately via a robotic arm. All of Zoom's robotic stores are networked and centrally monitored, ensuring high reliability and customer service levels.
"This round of financing will greatly accelerate our ability to help brands extend their reach beyond the retail store so they can offer the highest demand products in places consumers need them most," said Gower Smith, Founder and CEO of Zoom Systems. "Our sleek Zoom Shops give brands and products tremendous exposure and sales opportunity in a retail experience that is unique and which consumers really like."
Zoom also announced that Clay Creasey, former CFO of Mervyn's, a division of Target Corp., has joined the already experienced retail team at Zoom. Creasey takes over CFO duties from current director of finance Matt Confer, who served as acting CFO over the past two years and assisted in efforts that secured more than $18 million in funding for Zoom.
Today, Zoom offers the most popular consumer electronics, wireless communication and computer accessories from iconic brands at robotic stores located at major metropolitan airports. Zoom Shops also offer home office supplies to shoppers at major grocery stores. Zoom has replaced unprofitable gift shops at major hotel destinations where they now serve customers during hours the previous gift shop was closed.
"Zoom can transform 40 square feet into a profit center that generates thousands of dollars in annual revenue per square foot," said Peg Jackson, Managing Director at NeoCarta who has joined the board of Zoom. "And the shopping experience is so positive that even at this early stage, over 25 percent of purchases are from repeat customers."
Sierra Ventures with $1.1 billion of committed capital under management, led an earlier round of financing for Zoom and are the largest investor in this round. Sierra has three partners working closely with the company on its plans for growth; Jeff Loomans and David Schwab are on Zoom's board and Tim Guleri is a Zoom advisor.
Zoom executive management team, board of directors and advisors all have extensive retail backgrounds at leading brands that include Target, LVMH Moet Hennessey Louis Vuitton, Bank of America, Mattel and Compaq. Zoom executives and founders participated in the financing and now own 40 percent of equity in Zoom.
Other Zoom directors and advisors also participated including U.S. Venture Partners' Phil Schlein, the former CEO of Macy's California and former board member at Apple Computer for eight years and Bruce Quinnell, Zoom Systems Chairman of the Board. Quinnell is former Vice Chairman, President and COO of leading retailer Borders Group and currently is also chairman of Hot Topic, one of the nation's most successful mall retailers.
About Zoom Systems
Zoom Systems is pioneering a new channel; automated retail that places
iconic brands and high demand products directly in the path of consumers.
These "state-of-the-art" robotic stores utilize 30-40 square feet carry
only the world's most popular products and are located in high consumer
traffic areas, a retailing strategy that stands in a clear contrast to
confusing, crowded and cluttered mega stores. Zoom's robotic stores use
technology to provide consumers simplicity, speed and easy access to
products from high profile brands offering consumers a revolutionary
new retail experience. Led by a dynamic team of experienced retail executives,
Zoom plans over the next two years to implement thousands of these robotic
stores in high traffic locations such as airports, hotels, malls and
grocery stores. http://www.zoomsystems.com
About NeoCarta Ventures
NeoCarta Ventures is a leading venture capital firm specializing in early
to mid-stage technology investments. The firm focuses on investments
in IT infrastructure, software, hardware, networking, media and wireless.
With offices in San Francisco and Boston, NeoCarta partners' backgrounds
include senior investment experience with outstanding track records at
GE Capital, Intel Capital, Thomson, and NBC. NeoCarta works closely with
entrepreneurs and actively adds value by providing strategic guidance,
team-building skills, industry knowledge, and operating expertise. With
NeoCarta's unique mix of financial, operational, and technical expertise,
the firm is able to add value at all stages of a company's development.
NeoCarta's Web site address is: http://www.neocarta.com.
About Sierra Ventures
Sierra Ventures, founded in 1982, is a privately held venture capital
firm focused on investments across all areas of the Information Technology
sector from semiconductors to enterprise software. Sierra Ventures has
managed eight venture capital partnerships and currently has more than
$1 billion of capital under management. Some of the firm's investments
include Combinet (acquired by Cisco), StrataCom (acquired by Cisco),
ConvergeNet (acquired by Dell), Quinta (acquired by Seagate), Intuit
(INTU), OnLink (acquired by Siebel), Healtheon (merged with WebMD), AmeriGroup
(AGP), Micromuse (MUSE), Active Software (acquired by WebMethods), Centex
(acquired by WorldCom), and Interact Commerce (acquired by Sage). More
information is available at http://www.sierraventures.com.