Purch Closes $135 Million Investment to Expand Commerce-Driven Digital Publishing Model

NEW YORK, June 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Purch, a digital content and commerce company, today announced it has raised $135 million in a Series C private equity and debt financing round led by Canso Investment Counsel, a Canadian portfolio manager with extensive digital and media holdings. As the largest tech publisher in the U.S., with more than 100 million monthly unique visitors, Purch is fueling over $1 billion in commerce transaction annually by connecting in-market buyers with more than 7,000 marketers and sellers across 1,000+ product categories. The funding will be used for strategic acquisitions to accelerate the company's already strong organic growth and to continue Purch's disruption of the digital publishing model by combining content and commerce to advise, entertain, and enable consumers' purchases.

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"Purch's model is shaping the future of digital publishing and our consistent profitability and growth is an affirmation that it's working for consumers, marketers, and investors. This investment is an opportunity to further accelerate this inherent growth and the strategic development of our content and commerce platform," said Greg Mason, CEO, Purch. "Purch brands are laser-focused on making buying decisions easy for consumers and businesses through expert product analysis, user opinions, and convenient purchase options. This focus has made Purch the destination for not only decision-making, but the purchase itself, which allows us to pull ahead of other tech publishers in scale, influence, and value delivered to marketers."

Purch has tripled in size over the past two years and has been profitable since 2012. It will use the funds solely for acquisitions and growth activities and does not need the capital to fund operations. The company will also expand coverage on its owned and operated sites, including Top Ten Reviews, Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, and Live Science, to 1,400 product categories.

"The more we looked at Purch, the more we liked what we saw," said John Carswell, Chief Investment Officer of Canso. "We believe that quality content is critical to the Internet and the future of e-commerce. Purch has done an amazing job at figuring out how to create and monetize content and we are fully confident that the team can extend this to build an even more valuable business."

Purch's digital content, produced through its expert editorial staff and peer reviews from its community of ten million active members, helps millions make smarter purchases. Its content-commerce combination offers inherent value to brands seeking effective ways to connect with serious buyers. To find out more about Purch, visit www.purch.com, or follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.

RBC Capital Markets acted as exclusive placement agent for the financing.

About Purch    
Purch is a portfolio of digital brands that helps make buying decisions easy for 100 million consumers and businesses monthly. Its respected sites such as Top Ten Reviews, Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, and Live Science natively integrate commerce and content in more than 1000 product categories so consumers can make better choices before, during, and after an important purchase. The company helps marketers achieve their branding and performance objectives in a high-quality, brand-safe context. Its sites connect in-market shoppers with more than 7,000 marketers and sellers, driving industry-leading conversion rates and $1 billion in commerce transactions annually. Purch is a high-growth, privately held company with more than 350 employees and offices across the U.S. and Europe. For more information on Purch, visit www.purch.com or follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. 

About Canso  
Canso Investment Counsel Ltd. is an independently operated employee owned investment management firm based in Richmond Hill, Ontario.  Founded in 1997 Canso manages total assets in excess of $16 billion on behalf of Canadian institutional and private clients.  For more information on Canso visit www.cansofunds.com.

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SOURCE Purch

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http://www.purch.com