Interlace Ventures — Investment Thesis & Preferences

Interlace Ventures Research

Investment Thesis

Interlace Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2019, dedicated to investing in founders reimagining commerce. The firm believes that the future of commerce will be shaped by innovative technology companies that transform retail and e-commerce infrastructure. With deep roots in commerce operations and retail expertise, Interlace partners with founders who are building the next generation of commerce-enabling technologies.

The fund's core mission centers on supporting entrepreneurs who understand the pain points of modern retail and e-commerce businesses, providing not just capital but operational support and strategic access to global retail brands and enterprise partners.

Sector and Market Focus

Interlace Ventures invests exclusively in the commerce and retail technology sector, spanning the entire commerce value chain including:

E-Commerce Infrastructure: Payment processing, fulfillment optimization, integration platforms
Retail Technology: Point-of-sale systems, inventory management, store operations
Commerce Enablement: Analytics, pricing, merchandising, marketplace platforms
Supply Chain & Logistics: Fulfillment automation, supply chain optimization
Consumer Experience: Personalization, loyalty programs, customer engagement
Web3 & Commerce: Blockchain-based commerce solutions, NFTs for commerce
Retail As A Service: New retail formats and operations models

The firm explicitly focuses on early-stage technology companies that enable or transform commerce, not consumer-facing retail brands themselves.

Stage Focus and Check Size

Interlace targets pre-seed and seed-stage companies:

Preferred Stages:

Pre-seed: Early validation with founding team and product concepts
Seed: Initial product-market traction with early customers
Series A: Growth stage (selective follow-on investments)

Check Size Range:

Minimum: $100K
Maximum: $5M
Typical seed investment: $500K - $2M

The fund is not a lead-focused investor; they prefer to co-invest alongside other venture capital firms and maintain a collaborative investment approach.

Fund and Investment Activity

Fund Details:

First fund closed in June 2021 with $14M in capital
Backed by major institutional LPs including PayPal, Bain Capital, and Carta
Actively deploying capital as of late 2025
Total portfolio: 51+ companies as of July 2025

Recent Investment Activity (2024-2025):

July 2025: Augmodo ($37.5M Series A, co-investor)
May 2025: Flyp (AI-powered fashion resale platform)
Ongoing: Active deployment of capital with approximately 1 new investment per quarter

Portfolio Performance:

7 exits to date, including acquisitions and strategic sales
Notable exits:
- Goodeed: Acquired by La Banque Postale (charitable commerce platform)
- OTO: Acquired by Unity (audio chat analysis for commerce)
- PresenceAI: Acquired by Groupon (AI-powered messaging for commerce)
- Hyphen: Acquired by Betterworks (employee engagement platform)

Investment Portfolio Overview

Interlace's portfolio spans the entire commerce value chain with 51+ active companies including:

Notable Portfolio Companies:

Integration & Operations:

Alloy Automation: ERP/CRM/commerce integration platform
Commerce.js: Flexible commerce engine
Rabot: Fulfillment center optimization
Ravacan: Supplier collaboration platform

Analytics & Optimization:

Promoted.ai: Unified search and feed optimization (customers: Gopuff, Outschool, TeachersPayTeachers)
Algopix: Cross-channel pricing and demand analysis
Singuli: AI-driven analytics for brands and retailers
Invisible Commerce: Retail margin optimization

Retail & Brand Solutions:

Darkstore: Global product accessibility and fulfillment
Flyp: AI-powered fashion resale and circular commerce
Stour: Editorial feed to retail conversion
Olive (formerly Oyster): Sustainable packaging solutions
Vendora: Online selling tools for independent grocers

Emerging Commerce Models:

B8ta: Retail-as-a-service platform
Indie: Local retail modernization
Salted: Platform for restaurant brand growth
Zing: Dynamic suburban commerce
Queenly: Secondhand marketplace for women's formalwear
Treet: Recommerce platform

Technology & Infrastructure:

Augmodo: AR capabilities for retail workforce efficiency
Bounty: Floor staff retention and rewards platform
StayTuned: Shopify app marketplace aggregation
Arkive: Decentralized cultural museum (emerging commerce model)
Passage Protocol: Web3 memberships

Marketing & Discovery:

Beam Impact: Charity-linked consumer purchasing
Selfmade: Growth-oriented marketing solutions

Team and Leadership

Founding Team:

Vincent Diallo, Founder & General Partner: Retail and commerce expert with deep operational experience in the retail sector. Co-founded Interlace in January 2019.
Joseph Sartre, Founder & General Partner (1986-2022): Remembered fondly by the firm, contributed to founding vision during early years.

Current Team:

Sydney Werber, Venture Partner: Extensive commerce operations background, hands-on investor
Ruchika Julapalli, Venture Partner: Commerce and retail technology specialist

Advisory Board:

Doug Stephens: Retail Futurist and thought leader
Philippe Cases: Former GP at Partech & Sofinnova (deep European tech expertise)
Ken Fenyo: CMO of Grabango (retail technology)
Matt Kaness: CEO & entrepreneur with public company and consumer tech experience
Anil Benard-Dende: Director General, KEDGE Business School
Catherine Barba: Founder, funder, and independent board member

The team has extensive commerce experience as founders, operators, and investors, bringing hands-on retail and e-commerce expertise to portfolio companies.

Investment Process and Decision-Making

Decision Process:

Partnership model with collaborative decision-making among general partners
Co-investment approach: Prefers to build syndicates with other investors
Typically not sole lead investors

Decision Timeline:

2-4 weeks typical for seed investments
Quick evaluation for companies addressing clear commerce pain points
Hands-on due diligence given operational backgrounds

Value-Add Strategy:

Operational support from ex-operators in global retail
Strategic introductions to retail brands and enterprise customers
Access to Interlace Platform: Connection to global retailers and brands seeking innovation
Advisory support from world-class advisors with deep retail expertise

Warm Introduction Requirements

Warm introductions are highly valued but not absolutely required. The firm accepts inbound pitches and is responsive to:

Referrals from portfolio companies
Introductions from their advisory network
Direct outreach from founders with clear commerce pain points

Investment Focus Areas

Geographic Focus:

Global, with emphasis on US (particularly New York and West Coast)
Some European portfolio companies
Open to international commerce technology founders

Founder Profile:

Technical founders with domain expertise in commerce or retail
Operators with experience in large retail organizations
First-time founders with deep commerce understanding
Strong preference for teams with complementary skills

Problem-Solving Criteria:

Real, quantifiable problems in commerce/retail operations
Scalable solutions that benefit multiple commerce participants
Technology that addresses global commerce challenges
Business models that create value for retail partners

Competitive Positioning

Interlace differentiates itself from other early-stage VCs through:

Commerce Expertise: Team and advisors with deep operational retail and e-commerce experience
Retail Network: Direct relationships with global brands and retailers through their Platform
Portfolio Synergies: Ability to introduce portfolio companies to each other for partnerships
Hands-On Support: Ex-operators who understand commerce challenges intimately
Strategic Value-Add: Beyond capital, providing customer development and strategic partnerships

As one portfolio founder noted: "Interlace is one of the few funds that truly understands the commerce infrastructure landscape. Their network of partners and founders is exceptional and includes some of the top minds in the industry." (James Kawas, CEO & Co-founder, Flyp)

Fund Status and Outlook

Current Status (as of late 2025):

Actively deploying capital
51+ investments across portfolio
Approximately 1 new investment per quarter
Focus on supporting existing portfolio through growth phases
Platform connecting portfolio companies to retail brands is core value-add

Market Positioning:

Positioned as the go-to early-stage fund for commerce technology
Strong reputation in commerce and retail tech ecosystem
Active in both traditional e-commerce and emerging commerce models (Web3, sustainable retail, etc.)

Investment Characteristics

Lead Tendency: Rarely leads, prefers to co-invest
Follow Tendency: Actively follows successful portfolio companies into Series A
Board Participation: Typically observer or advisor role
Portfolio Support: Hands-on operational support and strategic introductions

Summary

Interlace Ventures is a specialized early-stage venture capital fund with deep expertise in commerce and retail technology. Founded in 2019 by Vincent Diallo and Joseph Sartre, the firm has built a strong reputation for understanding commerce infrastructure and supporting founders who are reimagining how commerce operates at scale. With $14M in initial capital and 51+ portfolio companies, the fund takes a partnership approach to investing, leveraging its network of retail brands and commerce operators to create value beyond capital. The team's operational backgrounds and advisory board of commerce experts position the firm uniquely to support early-stage commerce technology founders.