Zaarly closes $14.1 M Series A round, adds HP CEO Meg Whitman to board

Mobile commerce startup Zaarly has closed a Series A venture financing round totaling $14.1 million. Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers' iFund and Sands Capital Ventures led the round, with CMEA, Venture51, Crunchfund, Mark Ecko and Artists and Instigators also contributing.

Zaarly is a hyper-local digital marketplace.

The cross-platform Zaarly peer-to-peer digital marketplace (the subject of a July 2011 FierceDeveloper profile) enables iOS, Android and web users to buy and sell goods, services and experiences within their local community. Zaarly users post what they're looking for, when they'd like it and how much they're willing to pay for the privilege; the hyper-local service automatically connects the request with fellow users who bid for the right to facilitate the transaction.

Since launching in mid-May, the Zaarly community has grown by more than 500 percent nationwide, with nearly $7 million in requests posted on the service. Fulfillments range from house cleaning to car repair to landscaping--Zaarly has also helped users land a wedding singer, fresh milk from a cow and even a bowl of Lucky Charms cereal consisting solely of marshmallows. Zaarly conceals all phone numbers to guarantee user anonymity and prohibits transactions involving drugs, alcohol and tobacco as well as sexual activities.

Zaarly said the new funding will support its expansion into new U.S. markets. In conjunction with the new round, Zaarly announced HP CEO Meg Whitman has joined its board of directors. Whitman previously served as CEO of digital marketplace eBay--she joined the company when it totaled just 30 employees and helped build an $8 billion online empire.

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