Dublin-based corporate giveaway platform &Open raises $26M Series A led by Molten Ventures • TechCrunch

Last year we covered how “&Open” (yes, “open ampersand,” pronounced “And Open”) raised a $7.2 million seed to make it easier for brands to send freebies to customers to build loyalty and uptake commitment. According to a study, customers who feel emotionally connected to a brand after receiving gifts have a 306% higher lifetime value. &Open competes with Sendoso and ReachDesk, which are in a similar space.

Because the pandemic has made us all work remotely, being able to send gifts remotely has suddenly taken on a whole new meaning. Plus, now “the big quit” means companies need to keep their customers and employees much nicer.

So Dublin-based &Open, which launched in 2017, has now raised $26 million in a Series A led by Molten Ventures, including participation from First Round Capital, LocalGlobe, Tribal VC, as well as new investor Middlegame Ventures. Other new and existing investors also contributed to this cycle. Series A brings &Open’s total capital raised to $33.2 million.

The company now has a presence in Ireland, the UK and the US, and plans to open an office in New York next year.

Its clients include Airbnb, Peloton, Spotify, Hopin, Intercom, Wayflyer and BetterUp. He also launched &Open On-Demand for SMEs.

“Now, more than ever, companies are looking for ways to retain employees and foster meaningful relationships with customers and partners,” Nicola McClafferty, partner at Molten Ventures, said in a statement. “Working with some of the world’s biggest companies and brands, &Open has proven that giveaways, when done right, are an incredibly powerful tool for increasing brand loyalty and building advocacy.”

The &Open on-demand gifting marketplace will give SMBs an easier way to giveaways and a pay-as-you-go model, unlike &Open’s enterprise solution, which has an annual contract and SaaS fee.

“All companies give gifts, whether to their employees, customers, prospects or partners. Businesses donate because people fuel businesses and those relationships need to be nurtured. Now, more than ever, loyalty matters,” said Jonathan Legge, co-founder and CEO of &Open.