Clay Stan All case studies
Case studies · Handmade.com / NOVICA

25 investor replies for a video-first artisan marketplace.

Handmade.com is a neonVest portfolio company built on top of NOVICA -- a 25-year-old artisan commerce platform with $25M TTM revenue, $140M+ paid directly to artisans, and partnerships with National Geographic, UNICEF, Kiva, and the Smithsonian.

Investor outreachMarketplaceCommerceVideo-first
Client: Handmade.com / NOVICA (neonVest portfolio) Track record: $25M TTM, $140M+ paid to artisans
596
Investors contacted
Across 2 sequenced campaigns
25
Replies
4.46% overall reply rate
5
Positive replies
Active diligence conversations
$140M+
Paid to artisans
Existing platform track record

The setup.

Handmade.com is positioned as the next-generation, video-first marketplace scaling on top of NOVICA's proven infrastructure. The brief: get the deck in front of marketplace investors who understand long-tail commerce, vertical software, and global supply chains.

Campaign performance.

Campaign 01 -- 472 contacted, 19 replies, 3 positive (15.79%)
Campaign 01 -- 472 contacted, 19 replies, 3 positive (15.79%)
Campaign 02 -- 124 contacted, 6 replies, 1 positive (16.67%)
Campaign 02 -- 124 contacted, 6 replies, 1 positive (16.67%)

Replies from top firms.

Reply from Gaorong Capital
Gaorong Capital -- $2.8B+ AUM, 244+ portfolio cos (Meituan, Pinduoduo, Nuro); partner asking valuation range
Reply from Nesta with Bethnal Green Ventures
Nesta + Bethnal Green Ventures -- UK innovation foundation; direct intro to ume@bethnalgreenventures.com
Reply from Interplay Ventures
Interplay Ventures -- ~$150M AUM, Series A B2B marketplaces & vertical software (Fund III $45M Q4 2023)
Reply from Eleven Ventures
Eleven Ventures -- €70--80M AUM, 170+ investments; CEE's most active early-stage fund (Sofia)
Reply from BankTech Ventures
BankTech Ventures -- $116M Fund I, 66 community-bank LPs ($500M--$80B AUM each); 23.18% net IRR
Reply from Vesta Ventures
Vesta Ventures -- 2021 vintage proptech fund (NYSE-anchored); 22 investments incl. Setpoint, RentSpree, Flyhomes

The stack we deployed

  • Octoparse + Instant Data Scraper -- investor database scraping
  • Clay -- data enrichment and personalization
  • Apollo, Icypeas, Leadmagic -- email enrichment
  • BounceBan + Reoon -- double email verification, sub-1% bounce
  • EmailGuard -- bypass ESPs, land in primary
  • HeyReach -- LinkedIn outreach sequencing
in
The full copy framework

How we research subject lines per investor and frame the pitch -- broken down in our LinkedIn post.

Read the data-backed guide to fundraising

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