Austin's Loop & Tie secures $105K in funding for gifting platform

by Amy Reagan
October 21, 2014

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Seeking to blend the freedom of gift certificates with the personalization of a chosen gift, Austin's Loop & Tie just secured $105K in funding from undisclosed investors. This round builds on the $625K the company secured in early-stage funding in November 2013 in addition to other funds raised, bringing its current total of investment capital to $1.1 million. Past investors include Capital Factory, Silverton Partners and Floodgate Capital. 

Co-founders Sara Rodell, Jeffrey Schwartz and Joshua Caeser launched the site in May 2013, targeting the digital gifting service toward large businesses that frequently spend money on gifts for clients and employees. It's a large-scale progression from its former structure, Next One's On Me, which launched in 2012 and offered a mobile app allowing users to treat recipients to gifts like coffee, drinks and meals. 

"We see gifting as an opportunity to connect with customers and clients and we want to make it easier for companies to do just that," said Rodell. "We know professionals are busy and it can be difficult to spend time figuring out a gift to buy. With Loop & Tie the only decision is how much to spend, and after loading a list of recipient's email addresses, each person can choose their gift." 

Rodell also stressed the company's dedication to supporting its hometown: "We're also excited to bring the work of many Austin makers to a new audience," she said. "Some of our most popular gifts are crafted right here in town." Currently, locally-made gifts include Liber & Co cocktail syrups, BDJ Designs cheery wood coasters, Cuvee coffees, and more. 

The service is most popular with independent agents in the real estate, mortgage and insurance brokerage spaces "who use our service to host a gift experience that features their own branding and allows them to quickly send gifts to clients," Rodell said, noting that the service is open to anyone, but that its offerings lend themselves well to gift experiences tailored with personal branding by the sender. 

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pictured, l-r: Rodell, Roche, Harvey and Murtaugh

Loop & Tie's executive team now includes Dimitri Roche as Chief Technology Officer and Scott Murtaugh as Chief Product Officer. Both joined the company from Infogroup, where Dimitri was the Director of Engineering and Scott was VP of Business Development. Former sales consultancy firm owner Lindsey Harvey also joins the team as Director of Sales and Business Development. 

The company currently employs five full-time and four part-time employees. In late 2013, VentureBeat recognized it as one of seven promising Austin startups from that year's Capital Factory demo day.

Jobs at Loop & Tie

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