Lula Commerce, a leading provider of AI-driven digital commerce solutions for convenience retailers, announced the completion of an $8 million Series A funding round led by SEMCAP AI, with additional participation from Rich Products Ventures, GO PA Fund, NZVC, UP.Partners, Green Circle Foodtech Ventures, and Outlander VC. This latest round brings total funding for Lula Commerce to over $16 million, supporting the expansion of AI-powered solutions for convenience retailers nationwide.
The U.S. convenience retail sector presents significant opportunities for digital transformation. With over 155,000 stores serving more than 160 million visitors daily, most shopping still occurs offline. Fewer than 10% of convenience retailers currently offer modern online ordering or delivery options, leaving billions in untapped revenue. Legacy technology, limited connectivity, and rising labor costs have hindered operators from building advanced digital experiences internally, highlighting the need for scalable AI-driven solutions like Lula Commerce.
Lula Commerce offers an AI-powered retail operating system that modernizes digital operations for convenience stores and retail operators. The platform includes Lula Hub, which integrates third-party delivery services such as Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub into a single dashboard; Lula Direct, enabling branded web and mobile ordering; and Lula Operators, a suite of over 30 AI-driven tools automating refunds, reviews, uptime, and other critical operations. Together, these tools allow retailers to provide sophisticated, high-speed digital experiences previously available only to large multinational chains.
Recent growth includes partnerships with Circle K (franchisees), United Pacific (Rocket/Alta Stores), Jacksons Food Stores, Par Mar Stores, Clipper Petroleum, and over 50 regional convenience chains across the U.S., covering thousands of franchise locations.
“Lula Commerce is an ideal example of the type of portfolio company SEMCAP AI targets for investment, leveraging AI to disrupt how businesses operate, boosting productivity, and transforming markets,” said Vince Menichelli, Chief Operating Officer and Managing Partner, SEMCAP AI. “With nearly 50% of Americans visiting convenience stores each day, this is a category ripe for digitization on almost every front. We’re proud to partner with the incredible management team at Lula to work to transform this industry and accelerate their growth.”
"It’s an incredible privilege to build mission-critical technology for some of the most iconic and forward-thinking retail brands in the country. As consumer expectations shift and digital continues to reshape retail, we’re committed to being the backbone that powers this transformation." — Adit Gupta, Co-Founder & CEO, Lula Commerce.