LeftLane Sports announced it has closed a second round of equity financing to support the company’s rapid expansion. The company disclosed neither the amount or source of the investment, but said it enable it to secure a multi-million dollar credit facility with Silicon Valley Bank.


The investments were well timed to support the recent e-commerce deals LeftLane struck with the Active Network , the leader in cloud-based Activity and Participant Management (APM), and Competitor Group Inc., one of the nation’s largest and most influential active lifestyle media and event promoters.
 

As of July 2, 2013, LeftLane Sports is the main provider of all e-commerce for the varied entities of the Competitor Group, Inc. LeftLane Sports will control e-commerce for Gearbuzz.com, as well as manage online shopping functionality for the Competitor Group properties. These include: Competitor, Women’s Running, Velo News, Triathlete and Inside Triathlon magazines, and over 80 national events, including the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series, among others. Visitors to a Competitor Group online site will be redirected to LeftLaneSports.com to finalize purchases with the reliable LeftLane Sports functionality and ease, excellent customer service and a seamless, integrated branding experience.


LeftLane Sports created a similar partnership with the Active Network in November 2012 with the launch of Active GearUp.  Together, the two partnerships provide LeftLane Sports with access to over 80 million users annually.  Combined with other LeftLane Sports entities, the consumer reach for outdoor and endurance member-exclusive sites is unprecedented.


As part of the company’s growth strategy, LeftLane Sports has also acquired three specialty flash sites within the last 19 months: Seshday.com (April 2012; core action sports), Planetgear.com (October 2012- women’s specific), and TightLinz.com (June 2013, fishing).


“We’re thrilled with our recent partnerships and acquisitions, and we are grateful to our investors for making it fiscally possible to continue to deliver on our promise of exemplary service and ‘insider’ access to the world’s top brands,” said Erik Fialho, chief strategy officer for LeftLane Sports. “These strategic partnerships fit into our past two years of rapid expansion and into our long-term goals. As we expand, we will continue to place top value on the brand-segmentation within our portfolio of member-exclusive sites. As individuals, we are all active and passionate about our own outdoor sports, so we understand site autonomy is crucial to maintaining an authentic relationship with our members and brand partners. At the same time, we’re able to capitalize on our robust infrastructure and technical expertise in order to effectively scale operations among and between these distinct audience preferences.”


LeftLane Sports is a members-only retail website offering premium Endurance, Outdoor, and Action Sports products at up to 70 pecent below retail prices. Site membership is free and requires only a name and email address. LeftLane Sports operates the largest network of members-only retail websites in the sporting goods industry, including LeftLaneSports.com, Seshday.com, PlanetGear.com, TightLinz.com, and GearUp.ACTIVE.com. LeftLane Sports was founded in 2009 by industry veterans and friends, Helio Fialho, Maggie Bartels, and Erik Fialho. LeftLane Sports is headquartered in San Luis Obispo, CA.