How to Find Investors for an Ecommerce Startup: Stage Mix, States and Fund Sizes
To find investors for an ecommerce startup, start from our list of 91 ecommerce investors and narrow it by stage, place and fund size. Seed is the stage they name most (57 of the 75 with a stage on file), ahead of pre-seed. About four fifths are in the US, where California leads with 20. The median fund on file from SEC Form D is $60M, above the $50M for every investor we hold with such a figure.
Among the 36 sectors we can compare, ecommerce has the third lowest share of US investors with a Form D filing in the last 12 months: 28%, against 38% of all US investors we hold. By type, the 91 are 78 VC firms, 3 corporate venture arms, 2 angel networks, 2 accelerators, 2 SEIS or EIS funds and 2 venture debt funds, with 2 of other types. The tags these investors most often carry beside ecommerce are SaaS and B2B software (73), AI (61) and fintech (52).
What do ecommerce investors look for?
An online store is read one order at a time. Investors rebuild your economics from the average basket, the cost of goods, shipping, returns and the advertising needed to win the order, then ask how many customers come back without being paid for again.
- What does one order earn after every variable cost? Contribution margin per order shows whether more orders mean more profit or more loss.
- How dependent are you on one platform? A store that lives on a single ad network or marketplace carries a risk that is easy to price and hard to remove.
- What share of revenue comes from repeat buyers? Returning customers are the part of revenue that advertising did not have to buy this month.
Which stage do ecommerce investors back?
Among the 75 of the 91 with a stage on file (a firm can state several), seed comes first with 57 (76%), then pre-seed (32), Series A (19), growth (18) and Series B (4). Set against every investor we hold, the group leans toward pre-seed (43% here, 39% overall) and away from Series A (25% here, 34% overall). With about three quarters naming seed, a seed round has the widest field on this list.
| Stage (our research) | Ecommerce investors | Share of the 75 with a stage on file | Share of all 91 on the list | Same share, all investors with a stage | Difference in points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-seed ecommerce investors | 32 | 43% | 35% | 39% | +4 |
| Seed ecommerce investors | 57 | 76% | 63% | 75% | +1 |
| Series A ecommerce investors | 19 | 25% | 21% | 34% | -9 |
| Series B | 4 | 5% | 4% | 14% | -9 |
| Growth-stage ecommerce investors | 18 | 24% | 20% | 28% | -4 |
Where are ecommerce investors based?
71 of the 91 are based in the US, so this is mostly an American list, with 12 in the UK and 8 in the rest of Europe. Among the 68 US investors with a state on file, California holds 29% (20), less than its 36% share of all US investors we hold. New York is a distant second with 10, then Massachusetts (6) and Illinois (4). Massachusetts stands out: it holds 9% of this group and 6% of all US investors.
| State | Ecommerce investors | Share of the 68 with a state on file | Share of all US investors | Difference in points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 20 | 29% | 36% | -7 |
| New York | 10 | 15% | 15% | 0 |
| Massachusetts | 6 | 9% | 6% | +3 |
| Illinois | 4 | 6% | 3% | +3 |
| Florida | 3 | 4% | 6% | -2 |
| Texas | 3 | 4% | 6% | -2 |
By city, counting the head offices of every type of investor, the largest groups are San Francisco (7), New York (5), Brooklyn (3) and Los Angeles (3).
| City | State | Ecommerce investors | Share of the 71 in the US |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | CA | 7 | 10% |
| New York | NY | 5 | 7% |
| Brooklyn | NY | 3 | 4% |
| Los Angeles | CA | 3 | 4% |
| Chicago | IL | 3 | 4% |
One region has its own list: Ecommerce venture capital firms in the US (69).
How big are ecommerce funds?
Across the 55 of the 91 ecommerce investors with a fund size from SEC Form D on file, the median is $60M, above the $50M for every investor we hold with such a figure. 29% of these funds are under $25M and 44% are $100M or more. The figure is the fund as filed, not a check size, and a firm's main fund on our record, which is not always its newest; for 10 of the 55 the offering amount is indefinite, so it is the amount sold so far.
| Fund size on file (SEC Form D) | Ecommerce investors | Share | Share, all investors with a figure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under $10M | 7 | 13% | 15% |
| $10M to $25M | 9 | 16% | 18% |
| $25M to $50M | 6 | 11% | 15% |
| $50M to $100M | 9 | 16% | 19% |
| $100M to $250M | 14 | 25% | 19% |
| $250M to $1B | 10 | 18% | 12% |
| $1B and over | 0 | 0% | 1% |
Which ecommerce investors can you look at first?
A fund that backs online stores often backs software for merchants too. Decide which you are, a brand that sells online or a tool for those who do, and keep the investors whose portfolio matches. The first kind sits closer to consumer funds and the second to software funds.
The 8 firms below are among the free rows of our list of ecommerce venture capital firms in the US (69): each names the sector in its own description, and they stand in that list's order, by our activity score, which is no measure of quality.
3L Capital
HQ: Los Angeles, California · Type: VC firm · Stages (our research): Growth · Latest activity: New deal, Jul 2026 (our research) · Private fund assets: $915M (SEC Form ADV)
Los Angeles growth equity firm, also in New York, investing in emerging growth companies in commerce, enterprise software and tech-enabled services.
Capital F
HQ: Mill Valley, California · Type: VC firm · Stages (our research): Pre-seed, Seed · Latest activity: Form D filing, Jul 2026 · Fund size on file: $17M (SEC Form D, 2024)
Pre-seed and seed investor in technology for the female economy, across health, AI and digital commerce.
Capitalize VC
HQ: Chicago, Illinois · Type: VC firm · Stages (our research): Pre-seed, Seed · Latest activity: Portfolio news, Jun 2026 (our research) · Fund size on file: $10M (SEC Form D, 2021)
Chicago, IL pre-seed investor in B2B commerce-enablement technology and creator economy infrastructure serving retailers, brands, creators and supply chains.
Ignia
HQ: Boston, Massachusetts · Type: VC firm · Stages (our research): Seed · Latest activity: Portfolio news, May 2026 (our research) · Fund size on file: $10M (SEC Form D, 2022)
Early-stage venture firm, active since 2007, backing technology entrepreneurs solving problems in Latin America, with focus areas including fintech, health tech, e-commerce, software and marketplaces.
Atlas Ventures
HQ: Chicago, Illinois · Type: VC firm · Stages (our research): Seed, Series A, Series B · Latest activity: Form D filing, Sep 2026 · Fund size on file: $23M (SEC Form D, 2026)
Chicago, IL firm investing from late seed to Series B in founders building in overlooked emerging markets, with focus areas such as security, Industry 4.0 and ecommerce enablers.
Grit Capital Partners
HQ: Mount Washington, Maryland · Type: VC firm · Stages (our research): Pre-seed, Seed · Latest activity: New deal, Aug 2026 (our research) · Fund size on file: $10M (SEC Form D, 2025)
Mount Washington, MD venture firm leading pre-seed and seed investments in applied AI startups in commerce, media, martech and fintech.
Sugar Capital
HQ: Sonoma, California · Type: VC firm · Stages (our research): Pre-seed, Seed · Latest activity: Form D filing, Jul 2026 · Fund size on file: $100M (SEC Form D, 2022)
Seed-stage investor writing first checks into consumer brands and commerce platforms, with a software side alongside consumer. Based in Sonoma, CA.
Mercury Fund
HQ: Houston, Texas · Type: VC firm · Stages (our research): Pre-seed, Seed, Series A · Latest activity: New deal, May 2025 (our research) · Fund size on file: $150M (SEC Form D, 2022)
Early-stage venture firm backing startups outside Silicon Valley in AI, blockchain and other frontier technologies across retail, fintech, healthcare, industrial, defense and security. Based in Houston, TX.
Which US ecommerce investors filed with the SEC most recently?
20 of the 71 US ecommerce investors (28%) have a Form D filing dated in the 12 months to 6 Nov 2026, a first notice or the yearly amendment of an older fund, below the 38% for all US investors we hold. Our file of new fund notices for the 8 weeks to 6 Nov 2026 holds 5 from 3 of these investors: Alpha Partners, M13 and Atlas Ventures.
| Investor | Location | Stages (our research) | Latest Form D filing | Amount on that filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alpha Partners | New York, New York | Series B, Growth | 15 Oct 2026 | $76M |
| Blue Impact | Boca Raton, Florida | Pre-seed, Seed | 13 Oct 2026 | $7M |
| M13 | Los Angeles, California | Seed, Series A | 18 Sep 2026 | Not stated |
| Atlas Ventures | Chicago, Illinois | Seed, Series A, Series B | 11 Sep 2026 | $23M |
| Sugar Capital | Sonoma, California | Pre-seed, Seed | 20 Jul 2026 | $75M |
| Left Lane Capital | Brooklyn, New York | Not stated | 10 Jul 2026 | $8M |
| Newtopia Investments | Not stated | Pre-seed, Seed | 9 Jul 2026 | $75M |
| Capital F | Mill Valley, California | Pre-seed, Seed | 9 Jul 2026 | $17M |
What should an ecommerce founder have ready before the first email?
An online store is judged order by order, so lead with what one order earns.
- Contribution margin per order after shipping, payment fees, returns and ad spend.
- The repeat order rate, and the usual gap between a first and a second order.
- Revenue by channel, so a reader can see how much depends on one ad platform or one marketplace.
Words ecommerce investors use
- AOV
- Average order value: revenue divided by the number of orders.
- Contribution margin
- What an order leaves after cost of goods, shipping, payment fees, returns and the marketing that won it.
- ROAS
- Return on ad spend: revenue credited to advertising divided by its cost.
- Return rate
- The share of orders sent back, which can weigh heavily on categories such as clothing.
A common slip. Reporting revenue growth without margin. In online retail the two can move in opposite directions, and a reader will assume the worse case.
How do you reach ecommerce investors?
92% of the list has a named decision-maker on file (84 of 91, 439 names in all), above the 84% across the whole database. About two fifths have a firm email address (37), and 25 publish how they want to be pitched, such as a form or an application page.
Use a pitch route where a firm publishes one, and otherwise write to one named person at a time, starting from the free outreach email templates; the full list is Ecommerce investors, all 91 investors, one per row, the first 25 free to read, and the matching tool opens with ecommerce already picked.
One-time payment. No subscription. No account.
Or get the free sample file (100 investors) first.
Method and limits
- Source
- SEC Form D for filing dates and fund sizes; our own research (each firm's website, UK and EU registers) for stage, the sector tag and dated deals.
- Counts
- The 91 rows of the list this page links to, as of November 2026, set against all 4,178 investors we hold (3,019 in the US); a gap under 3 points is treated as none, and a rank compares the sectors that have a list on this site and at least 30 rows for the measure (10 for a median fund size).
- Limits
- 1,302 US firms have no sector on file, so the true number of ecommerce investors is higher; 75 of the 91 here have a stage on file and 55 a fund size from SEC Form D; what investors look for, which ones to keep, the words they use and what to have ready are our advice for this sector, not data about any one investor.
Questions
How do I find investors for an ecommerce startup?
Start from the list of 91 ecommerce investors, then filter by stage (57 of the 75 with a stage on file name seed), by place (29% of the US ones with a state on file are in California) and by fund size (the median fund on file is $60M).
What do ecommerce investors ask founders?
What does one order earn after every variable cost? How dependent are you on one platform? What share of revenue comes from repeat buyers?
How big are ecommerce funds?
The median fund on file is $60M across the 55 ecommerce investors with a figure from SEC Form D, above the $50M for every investor we hold with such a figure.
Can I contact ecommerce investors directly?
84 of the 91 have a named decision-maker on file and 37 a firm email address; 25 publish a pitch route, and where one exists it is the way in they ask for.
Guides for other sectors
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Related
Ecommerce investors (91)Ecommerce venture capital firms in the US (69)Seed ecommerce investors (57)Pre-seed ecommerce investors (32)Ecommerce investors in California (20)Match ecommerce investors to your roundHow to build an investor listInvestor outreach email templatesHow many investors to pitchInvestor databases comparedWhat is in the investor database
Cite this page
Muhammad Tayyab Shabbir, "How to Find Investors for an Ecommerce Startup: Stage Mix, States and Fund Sizes", The Investor Database, 10 Nov 2026. https://theinvestordatabase.com/guides/how-to-find-investors-for-an-ecommerce-startup/