Amify,
a turnkey solution for brands seeking to maximize sales and optimize
their presence on Amazon, announced today the addition of three members
to its board of directors: Blair Garrou, Co-founder & Managing Director
at Mercury Fund; Mark Hasebroock, Founder of Dundee Venture Capital; and
Kurt Abrahamson, the current Chairman and former CEO of ShareThis.
“Our new board members bring the experience and expertise we need to
enable brands to realize the full potential of their Amazon presence,”
said Ethan McAfee, President and Founder of Amify. “Retailers and brands
need expert guidance to navigate the Amazon environment, particularly as
Amazon continues to make dramatic changes to the seller experience. Our
new board members enable us to scale our expertise at a crucial time for
brands.”
Following the company’s $5.8
million Series A funding round in March, Garrou, Hasebroock and
Abrahamson possess the resources, experience, connections and expertise
required to help Amify thrive as it pursues rapid growth over the next
several quarters.
New Board Members
Blair
Garrou, co-founder and Managing Director of Mercury Fund, is also
the co-founder and Board Director of Station Houston, a coworking
accelerator and the hub of software startups in Houston. Before
co-founding Mercury, Blair was the CEO of Intermat, a leader in product
information management software (acq. by IHS). Before Intermat, Blair
was a Principal of Genesis Park, a Houston-based venture capital and
private equity firm, where he focused on the firm’s software
investments, including Intermat, FuelQuest (acq. by Saracen Energy) and
SAT Corporation (acq. by Invensys). Blair also helped launch and was the
Director of Operations for the Houston Technology Center (HTC), the
largest technology incubator in the state of Texas, and led the
formation of the Houston Angel Network, one of the largest and most
active angel investment organizations in the U.S.
Mark
Hasebroock is the founder and principal at Omaha-based Dundee
Venture Capital. Mark and his team pride themselves on their investment
approach, informed in large part by skills they’ve adapted from their
own retailing experiences. Before founding Dundee Venture Capital, Mark
co-founded his first company, GiftCertificates.com, in 1997. Mark later
co-founded Hayneedle, which sold to Jet.com in 2016 before Jet went on
to become part of Walmart. Today, Dundee Venture Capital invests seed-
and early-stage capital in underserved capital markets between the
coasts.
Kurt
Abrahamson has over 25 years of experience building and leading
digital companies and is the current chairman and former CEO at data
intelligence company ShareThis. Before his work at ShareThis, Kurt led
the sales efforts behind one of Google’s most successful and well-known
products aside from Google Search, AdSense. Kurt started his career as
co-founder of Jupiter Communications, a leading internet research
organization he grew from a group of 12 employees to 520 by the time it
went public in 1999. Soon after, Jupiter Communications merged with
Media Metrix, Inc., at which Kurt served as President and CEO. Following
his stint with Google AdSense in 2003, Kurt served as CEO of
SocialMedia.com, a leader in online display advertising, until it was
acquired by LivingSocial in 2011.
Related Quotes
“I am honored to join the Amify board to provide guidance in growing and
expanding their brand platform to a broader audience of customers,” said
Blair Garrou. “I’m excited to work with and help recruit talent to
Amify’s already incredibly talented team. Given their growth trajectory
and the Company’s plans for the future, I fully expect Amify can become
the leading turn-key Amazon platform for brands in the U.S.”
“Amazon is the number one online retail platform in the United States
today, both in terms of customers and vendors, and it’s not even close,”
said Mark Hasebroock. “As brands who have long neglected to take charge
of their Amazon presence realize the potential it bears for their bottom
line, I’m excited to join the Amify team and empower brands with the
tools they need to implement a winning e-commerce strategy.”
“I am so thrilled to be working with Amify,” said Kurt Abrahamson. “The
company’s proven approach to driving consistent results for brands
selling on Amazon is a testament to Ethan and his team’s comprehensive
knowledge of the Amazon platform and marketplace. It’s this kind of
understanding that enables Amify to help customers presently, but which
will also help them to predict and account for how things might be
changing for sellers in the future.”
About Amify
Amify, a venture-backed two-time Inc 500 award winner, offers a turnkey
solution that allows brands to maximize their potential on the Amazon
marketplace. Using an end-to-end strategy, Amify has partnered with over
1,000 brands and accrued over $100 million in sales on Amazon. Amify’s
customized strategies help brands adapt to the ever-changing Amazon
landscape. Industry expertise and a data-driven approach power a
complete solution that includes account management, brand protection,
sales acceleration and content enhancement. For more information, please
visit https://goamify.com/.
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