LATEST DEVELOPMENT
VideoShops co-founders Abra Potkin and Nicole Winnaman have raised $42 million total funding to transform influencer marketing with native checkout technology that eliminates affiliate link redirections, allowing shoppers to purchase from multiple merchants in one click while paying sellers commissions within minutes
INDUSTRY TALK
"Consider affiliate linking completely dead. We killed it."
BY THE NUMBERS
Platform metrics include:
$42M total funding raised ($18M seed + $24M extension from 2023-2025)
30,000+ seller storefronts on the platform
2,700 merchants across beauty, fashion, wellness, and lifestyle
440,000 products available for promotion
18% transaction fee split (10% seller commission + 5% platform + 3% processing)
BUSINESS MODEL INNOVATION
Key differentiators include:
No application required for sellers to join platform
Native checkout eliminating redirects to brand websites
Universal Merchant Engine ingesting product catalogs and inventory data
Instant commission payouts through Venmo or PayPal after sales
Zero cost for brands and retailers to become merchants
NOTEABLE INVESTORS
Funding supporters include:
Dick Costolo (former Twitter CEO)
Dana Settle (Greycroft co-founder)
Alex Rodriguez (baseball star and entrepreneur)
Additional investors from 2023-2025 extension round
Verizon Media Group (original NOWwith incubator)
COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE
Market positioning includes:
Competing against LTK ($2B valuation) and ShopMy ($410M valuation)
Differentiation through barrier-free entry versus application-required platforms
Native checkout advantage over redirect-based competitors like Locker
Focus on beauty category expansion into fashion, wellness, and lifestyle
Low-risk business model with merchants handling shipping and customer service
THE BOTTOM LINE
VideoShops is betting that the future of influencer commerce lies in seamless, native checkout experiences rather than traditional affiliate links—creating a democratized platform where anyone can become a seller while merchants benefit from streamlined transactions, positioning the company to capture significant market share as user-generated content continues reshaping retail.