B-Stock Receives Growth Investment from Spectrum Equity

Belmont, CA – B-Stock, the world’s largest business-to-business marketplace for returned, excess, and other liquidation merchandise, announced today that it has received a $65 million investment from Spectrum Equity, a leading growth equity firm. The investment reinforces B-Stock’s 10-year history of profitable growth and will drive the expansion of its technology-based liquidation solution for retailers and manufacturers.

"B-Stock is the clear leader in the online liquidation space having delivered massive value to a long list of global, blue-chip customers. CEO and co-founder Howard Rosenberg and his team are enabling their retail clients to achieve higher recovery, better data and insights, more efficient processes, and a more liquid marketplace,” said Pete Jensen, Managing Director of Spectrum Equity. “As more retailers and manufacturers increasingly focus on reverse logistics and liquidation of excess inventory, the company is well positioned for continued growth, and we are eager to partner with them to help in that process.”

B-Stock’s marketplace platform sets up an online auction dynamic where retailers and manufacturers can sell their returned, excess and other liquidation inventory directly to a global base of approved business buyers. This dynamic drives greater demand, higher pricing, and a faster sales cycle while allowing for greater control over the process. By applying B-Stock’s auction strategy and data, hundreds of businesses, including nine of the top 10 U.S. retailers and the nation’s top two wireless carriers, are attaining the highest pricing possible for secondary-market merchandise across all categories, conditions and quantities.

“As e-commerce continues to grow and return rates continue to rise, the cost associated with processing returns is becoming a major pain point. Given today’s competitive retail climate, the ability to minimize any loss on returned and other excess inventory has become a competitive advantage for our clients. By leveraging our technology, extensive global buyer network, and our auction strategy expertise, our clients are achieving 30%-80% higher pricing on the inventory,“ said Howard Rosenberg, CEO and co-founder of B-Stock. “By partnering with Spectrum Equity we will be able to accelerate our growth which includes the goal to provide retailers and manufacturers with the most valuable liquidation solution available. Moving forward, Spectrum’s expertise and experience partnering with software and marketplace businesses like ours will be an invaluable resource.”

Since launching its first liquidation marketplace for a Fortune 500 retailer in 2009, B-Stock has sold billions of dollars worth of inventory, achieving a compound annual growth rate of over 100%. The company’s mobile business alone has experienced compound annual growth rate over 400% since launching in 2012. This year, across its network of marketplaces, the company is on track to sell over 70 million returned or excess items to its hundreds of thousands of business buyers located in 130 countries.

In conjunction with Spectrum’s investment, Pete Jensen and Adam Gassin of Spectrum Equity will join the B-Stock board of directors.

Previous investors True Ventures and Susquehanna Growth Equity will maintain stakes in the company; Amir Goldman of Susquehanna Growth Equity will remain on B-Stock’s board of directors. B-Stock was advised by Fenwick and West with DCS Advisory serving as B-Stock’s exclusive financial advisor. Spectrum Equity was advised by Kirkland & Ellis and retained Silicon Valley Bank to provide senior financing.

Additional financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

About B-Stock

B-Stock offers the world’s leading auction platform for returned, excess, and other liquidation inventory. Our platform sets up an online auction dynamic where retailers and manufacturers can sell directly to a diverse base of approved business buyers; this drives greater demand, higher pricing and a faster sales cycle, while maintaining the control you need. By applying our auction strategy and data, nine of the top 10 U.S. retailers, along with hundreds of other businesses, are attaining the highest pricing possible for secondary-market merchandise across all categories, conditions, and quantities. To become a part of the world’s largest network of liquidation marketplaces, please visit: bstock.com.