Clutch, Canada’s first online car retailing platform, said today it has raised $7 million in seed financing with a recent round led by Real Ventures. BrandProject, FJ Labs, Azure Capital Partners, and Global Founders Capital also participated in the round.
At Clutch.ca, customers can browse a large selection of used vehicles at “low prices and access an end-to-end online purchase experience which includes financing, insurance, and at-home test drives and delivery.”
The company says its “ensures complete peace-of-mind with each car being backed with a standard seven-day money back guarantee.
Clutch is led by Dan Park and Steve Seibel who say they are “passionate about applying technology to make buying a car easier, more transparent and fun.”
Park, the company’s CEO said, “the convenience of buying a car online has become more important than ever. For many, owning a car provides essential transportation and freedom to get to where you need to go.
“Increasingly, customers are demanding an easy, transparent, risk-free way to buy all goods and services online,” said Janet Bannister, managing partner of Real Ventures, who will be joining the Clutch board.
“While the auto industry has traditionally lagged other categories in providing consumers with this type of offering.”
Clutch, she added, is changing this by “offering Canadians a best-in-class e-commerce experience for used cars.”
Launched in 2016, the company began its operations in Halifax and has quickly become one of the leading car retailers in Atlantic Canada.
“Clutch was borne out of my frustration with the traditional car buying process which instills very little confidence and takes hours,” said Seibel, founder and COO.
“Our company was founded on a number of core values including building trust with our customers, making magic with every purchase, and building a company that makes a positive impact on our communities.”
Clutch said it “plans to use the new capital to help scale its business in each of the cities that it operates, as well as grow the team.”
