StoreHero, a Shopify-Specialized Growth Platform, Raises 50 Million Yen from Incubate Fund; IF Co-Managing Partner Paul McInerney Joins Board of Directors
StoreHero, Inc. (Headquarters: Shibuya, Tokyo; CEO: Junichi Kurose; hereinafter "StoreHero") completed a 50 million yen funding round from Incubate Fund in May 2021. Concurrent with this investment, Paul McInerney (hereinafter "McInerney"), Co-Managing Partner at Incubate Fund, will join StoreHero's Board of Directors.
Background
Driven by growing e-commerce demand and the spread of COVID-19, the number of online stores has been on the rise. From a convenience standpoint, marketplaces such as Amazon and Rakuten hold a large share of the online commerce market. At the same time, many merchants have expressed a desire to deepen customer relationships while building their own brand—citing limitations such as restricted product page customization options and limited access to customer data in terms of both quality and quantity.
In response to these needs, Shopify has seen rapid global adoption. Shopify is a multi-channel commerce platform used by over 1.7 million individuals, businesses, and brands worldwide, with a gross merchandise volume (GMV) of approximately 12 trillion yen in 2020—nearly double that of 2019. In Japan, GMV grew by 323% and new store openings increased by 228% in 2020, reflecting exceptional growth.
Reference: https://prtimes.jp/a/?c=34630&r=67&f=d34630-67-pdf-0.pdf
However, a shortage of growth talent and technically capable engineers in Japan has left some commerce businesses struggling to scale.
Features
Under the vision of "Grow the Friendships," StoreHero provides growth support services built on a proprietary growth platform, with the goal of creating a world where any commerce business can grow easily and enjoyably.
StoreHero aims to bring the sophisticated data analytics infrastructure and recommendation capabilities—the kind that mega-platforms like Amazon possess—to Shopify merchants.
Over the past year alone, StoreHero has built an impressive track record working with brands such as ANNA SUI, PAUL & JOE, LADUREE, and the Mashiko Online Pottery Market, with some stores growing to exceed 100 million yen in monthly revenue since launch. The company has also seen an increase in projects leveraging Shopify to enter overseas markets, developing commerce-building frameworks and growth solutions that reduce reliance on marketplaces alone.
McInerney, who will be joining as a director, spent 18 years at McKinsey & Company as a Senior Partner, leading the Marketing & Sales and Retail & Consumer Goods practices for the Asia-Pacific region. Throughout his tenure, he was involved in growth strategies leveraging digital transformation and analytics for top consumer goods and retail companies across Asia.
By integrating McInerney's expertise with StoreHero's capabilities, the company intends to accelerate the evolution of its growth solutions and expand globally.
Purpose of the Fundraise
The funds raised will be used to recruit talent for growth platform development, including growth data architects, server-side engineers, front-end engineers, growth consultants, and data analysts.
If you are interested in joining the StoreHero team, please reach out via our careers page.
Comments
StoreHero CEO, Junichi Kurose
"With the support of Incubate Fund, Japan's leading venture capital firm, and Paul, who brings world-class experience in the retail industry, StoreHero's potential has expanded tremendously. We are more committed than ever to developing solutions that contribute to the growth of Shopify merchants around the world."
Paul McInerney, Co-Managing Partner, Incubate Fund
"I feel I have found an exceptionally fitting team for my first investment since joining Incubate Fund. At a pivotal moment for e-commerce, I am fully committed to working alongside the StoreHero team to help attractive domestic and international brands achieve remarkable growth, drawing on my many years of experience in retail and consumer goods."
Yasuaki Tokumitsu, Shopify Japan K.K.
"As commerce continues to evolve rapidly, the work involved in growing a merchant's business has become increasingly complex and critical. Against this backdrop, I see tremendous potential in StoreHero's fundraise as a certified Shopify Expert. The growth of partners participating in the Shopify Partner Ecosystem—which is expanding worldwide—will further energize the ecosystem and contribute to the success of even more Shopify merchants."
Kei Kato, ANNA SUI Japan
"Our company is the Japanese subsidiary of ANNA SUI, a fashion brand headquartered in the United States. When building our Japanese e-commerce presence, we needed to develop on Shopify to ensure design and system consistency with the U.S. online store. At the time, we struggled to find a web development firm in Japan with deep Shopify expertise—until we discovered StoreHero. Their precise, efficient advice and execution allowed us to launch the site smoothly and implement version upgrades that enhanced the overall customer experience. We look forward to even better service as a result of this fundraise."
Takayuki Sakakibara, PAUL & JOE and LADUREE
"StoreHero is a true HERO Maker. They went far beyond site development—starting from zero, they trained and nurtured our staff into heroes, enabling us to grow independently in less than a year. With this fundraise, I am confident they will further strengthen their core competency in growth solutions and continue to drive our site's growth."
Hiroto Mizuno, Mashiko Online Pottery Market (dAgora)
"Partnering with StoreHero, we took on the challenge of bringing the Mashiko Pottery Market—with over 50 years of history—online, and we were able to delight many pottery market fans. Even under the challenging circumstances of a roughly three-week preparation period and limited staffing, we were able to resolve technical issues in a timely manner. This allowed us to fully leverage Shopify's strengths of 'ease of getting started' and 'high scalability,' resulting in outcomes that exceeded our expectations. StoreHero is truly a hero for any shop—not just technically, but as a partner you can discuss sales strategy with!"
About StoreHero
StoreHero is a Shopify-specialized growth solution provider that turns commerce businesses into heroes through a "Grow the Friendships" growth model. Built on a proprietary growth platform, StoreHero offers Shopify store development and growth support services.
About Incubate Fund
Incubate Fund is an independent venture capital firm dedicated to early-stage investment and company building, guided by the motto "FIRST ROUND, LEAD POSITION, BUILD INDUSTRIES." With total assets under management exceeding 62 billion yen and a cumulative portfolio of over 525 companies, Incubate Fund has one of Japan's largest track records in seed-stage startup investment (as of January 2021). As a trusted partner to entrepreneurs, the firm works closely alongside them to drive new business creation and the launch and value growth of early-stage ventures. URL: http://incubatefund.com/
Contact
StoreHero, Inc. — Marketing Department
e-mail: marketing@storehero.io
URL: https://storehero.io/ja/contact/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StoreHero-Japan-108015757355395/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/StoreHero1