Growing your business can be tough when your revenue, production, or inventory ebb and flow in less than perfect harmony. For 

 (also known as D2C or DTC), it can make the cash flow—and burn—a bit of a roller coaster. Today’s D2C founders and operators manage it all in the face of shifting production times, unpredictable financing journeys, and (shipping) delays, delays, delays. 

To level things out and enable the business to scale in the right way and at the right times, many D2C founders say they find themselves in a constant state of fundraising. For some, it’s a welcome and exhilarating part of the job. For others, it can feel like a distraction from building the core business. 

Either way, when you’re going direct to consumer, speed, flexibility, and ease of use are key—so you can stay focused on your products and your customers. Let's take a look at how D2C businesses can use 

As times change, D2C businesses innovate. Entrepreneurs and their teams constantly find great new ways to connect with their customers and deliver the goods (often literally!). Subscriptions are one of those ways. 

From cosmetics to craft crates, sporting equipment to specialty foods, just about everything comes as a subscription these days. And according to a widely shared prediction from the Subscription Trade Association (SUBTA), the trend will only continue—75% of D2C brands are expected to offer subscription services by 2023. 

As D2C companies embrace subscription models, they also need to find financing models that fit. The growth trajectory of a scaling D2C company isn’t always a good fit for 

, which has long been a favorite source of financing. Traditional loans can come with restrictions that don't align with founders’ and CFOs’ goals. Platforms like Pipe give founders back their time and energy so they can focus on building, innovating, and bringing their customers the next amazing thing.

For founders who want to lean into differentiating their companies and creating value, recurring revenue financing can help shift the always-fundraising dynamic. If a D2C company has product-market fit and predictable revenue, pulling forward that revenue through Pipe’s trading platform can help capitalize the business with the flexibility, speed, and autonomy they need.

Efficient access to capital to breakdown inventory bottlenecks

Most D2C businesses share common challenges like having enough inventory at the right time when long production lead times separate costs and revenue. 

 can help businesses reinvest in growth and buy inventory when the price and timing work best. 

D2C subscription companies also need the tech and talent to deliver a great experience to customers and grow that customer base as they scale the business. While investing in that tech and talent often has a significant and fairly quick ROI, finding the liquidity up front can be a hurdle when you don't have enough capital on hand.

How Pipe works for D2C subscription businesses

Equity is a powerful tool for long-range or speculative investments in your company, but it’s also dilutive: when you can quickly scale with a predictable ROI, it may not be worth the loss of control and ownership. With Pipe, you can access future recurring revenue right now, and sow it into product, people, and infrastructure so you can reap the rewards faster, all without giving up equity in your company. 

While traditional e-commerce and retailers often rely on bank loans or equity financing to scale, those with D2C subscription businesses have recurring revenue that can be harnessed to scale. The underlying subscription—and the predictability it provides—becomes a valuable asset to help you grow your business. Pipe’s trading platform is the first in the world to allow you to sell future revenue streams directly to institutional investors for up-front cash. That trade gives you capital for growth exactly when you need it without the restrictions of traditional loans, 

, and without many of the costs associated with traditional financing.

Learn how D2C coffee-alternative brand MUD\WTR accessed non-dilutive capital through Pipe to grow the business.

Not unlike a direct-to-consumer subscription, Pipe makes it easy to get what you need when you need it. When you sign up, you’ll securely connect your banking, billing, and accounting software to the Pipe platform. 

Secure live data connections allow Pipe’s algorithm to give you a trading limit based on the health of your company and the performance of your revenue. With a trading limit in place, you can select any amount within your limit and trade those revenue streams for capital at any time. 

You get the money in the bank the same or next business day, and the repayments are automatically withdrawn as those revenue streams come in.

Need to hire an engineer to take your website to the next level? Pipe it. 

Ready to expand your marketing campaigns to enter a new market? Pipe it. 

Want to buy inventory in larger quantities to get a volume discount? Yep. You can Pipe the funds for that too. 

Once you’re set up, trading on Pipe gives you the agility to get capital at any time—a leg up in a business where timing is key.

how Pipe works for D2C subscription businesses

If you run a D2C subscription business, what would help you run your business better? What would you like to learn more about? 

With Pipe, direct-to-consumer businesses can scale faster, tap into bulk inventory discounts, and close gaps between costs and revenue.


Fast access to non-dilutive capital can help D2C businesses overcome the challenge of timing inventory when long production lead times separate cost and revenue

See how Pipe helps D2C subscription businesses grow faster

Pipe for D2C Subscription Businesses | Pipe Blog

Through MUD\WTR, he’s working to share an alternative that gives people a lift while respecting—maybe even improving—their mental health. 

The company’s mission has resonated: Today, MUD\WTR has 130,000+ monthly subscribers.

After co-founding the company in 2018, Paul enjoyed both the opportunities and challenges of running a burgeoning business alongside a small but nimble team. And he quickly found himself managing explosive growth and a desire to ensure the company stayed focused. “Our first year, we grew over 400%, and our second year, 300%,” he says.

When it came to funding that growth, “We didn’t discriminate on how we were going to get money—we just really needed it quickly.”

The challenge: Streamlining growth while avoiding obstacles 

“When you have [working capital], the next step is you try to pour gasoline on it to go faster,” says Paul. MUD\WTR’s ambitions to grow could have been bogged down by the familiar hassles—and time-sucks—brought on by fundraising. Securing funding is often necessary and a worthwhile effort—but chasing a funding round can be stressful, sap resources, and can pull founders away from the mission that motivated them to start the business in the first place.

“We have the craziest testimonials from customers that they’re dreaming again, that they’re able to sleep, that they’re not anxious,” Paul says. “That’s why we’re excited to do what we do, and why we want to keep finding more [customers].” 

But he underscores a challenge many D2C founders know all too well: “Sometimes when your company’s doing really well, cash in the bank is going down because you have to keep buying inventory for the next set of customers.”

The solution: Flexible access to non-restrictive financing 

Paul says he was sold on Pipe within “20 minutes.” Because unlike traditional financing, Pipe didn’t come with the often tricky fine print, restrictions, or complications. 

“When you’re looking for working capital, you want to negotiate warrants down, you’re trying to negotiate fees down, and you’re trying to negotiate payment plans or the speed at which you pay back,” Paul says. Pipe made it simple.

Freed from the pitching, guesswork, and negotiations of fundraising, MUD\WTR didn’t have to prove its worthiness to an outside party. Instead, they got back to building their business. “We don’t need to convince anybody [to give us capital]—we see what’s available [on the Pipe platform] based on how well we’re doing as a company.”

After educating himself on Pipe, Paul secured MUD\WTR $18,000 just to test the waters—and later $1.2 million. With Pipe, the company was able to instantly get access to cash flow, and stop worrying about what’s in the bank. 

“This is going to fundamentally change how we raise money and how we scale,” Paul says. “The only thing I don’t like about Pipe is that I didn’t start it.”

how Pipe works for D2C subscription companies

customers are using Pipe to grow on their terms

How the coffee-alternative startup used their recurring revenue to grow—and got back to focusing on the business.

Sometimes when your company’s doing really well, cash in the bank is going down because you have to keep buying inventory for the next set of customers.

How MUD\WTR changed their relationship with fundraising

Case Study: How MUD\WTR changed their relationship with equity fundraising

How MUD\WTR changed their relationship with equity fundraising | Pipe Blog

Lack of liquidity is a pressing—and common—challenge many entrepreneurs face. Even if cash is on the way and business is healthy, having the right amount of capital on hand at the right time can be critical both to managing day-to-day operations and continuing to invest in your core product or service. 

The good news: Pipe can enable business owners with predictable revenue to access non-dilutive capital by connecting a couple of key accounts securely to its platform. Pipe makes getting access to capital fast, flexible, and seamless to get started, so you can grow your company on your terms. 

Let’s take a look at how integrations make trading on Pipe more efficient for you and your team.

First things first: How does trading on Pipe work?

It’s that easy. Once you’ve signed up and connected your accounts, you can get a trading limit (that’s how much capital you can pull forward) and a bid price (that lets you know how much that capital will cost) so you know what’s possible today and can act quickly in the best interest of your business.

Keep in mind that as your company grows, so too can your trading limit. Bid prices and trading limits are updated regularly and can improve over time as you build trading history.

How integrations help unlock your Pipe trading limit

Pipe aims to help you be more financially agile so you can grow your business on your terms, without the heavy manual overhead and paperwork that often comes with traditional financing. 

That’s why Pipe’s trading platform integrates with popular billing managers, banks, and accounting platforms to make getting access to the capital you need easy. 

But remember it’s not about cutting corners—it’s about efficiency. By securely connecting your accounts to Pipe, we’re able to bring together speed and responsible analysis to quickly provide you with a trading limit and access to the best possible bid prices.

What platforms and services integrate with Pipe?

Pipe connects directly to the banking software, billing managers, and accounting platforms most businesses use to manage payments, send invoices, reconcile accounts, track finances, and more. By securely connecting your accounts with Pipe, we can keep your trading limit and bid price up to date with no extra work on your part.

Let’s take a look at the growing list of platforms and companies that integrate with Pipe.

Looking for something that isn’t listed here? Let us know.

Why Pipe integrates with banking software

Securely connecting your bank account is important for establishing your bid price and trading limit. Syncing your bank account helps us understand your company’s burn and runway. 

Pipe partners with Plaid to enable secure, frictionless connections with hundreds of financial institutions. This includes major banks like Chase, Bank of America, and Barclays, credit unions, and startup-favorite financial institutions like Mercury, SVB, and Brex.

Why Pipe integrates with billing managers

In order to trade, Pipe needs to identify your revenue streams and sync them to your Pipe dashboard. You can trade a single revenue stream or bundle multiple together to trade them for a bulk sum payout.

What billing managers integrate with Pipe?

Pipe currently integrates with the popular billing software below. Whether you currently work with these tools or are looking to level up your current setup, we’ve shared a little information about each to help you make the best decisions for your business.

Suite of web-based tools for managing the performance, sales, and reviews of apps that are sold on the App Store.

Billing and revenue management platform built for subscription businesses.

Subscription management software for B2B SaaS companies that leverages billing, accounting, and data analytics tools.  

Billing tool that enables businesses to create and send professional, customizable invoices to customers.

All-in-one subscription management and recurring billing platform built for recurring revenue companies. 

Suite of fully integrated payment products built for online and in-person retailers that simplify managing businesses online.

Syncing your accounting software makes it possible for Pipe to better understand the financial health of your business—now and over time—through your P&L and balance sheet. 

What account software integrates with Pipe?

Pipe connects to the following accounting platforms, and we’re always working on adding new integrations.

Accounting software solution built to help small to medium businesses manage their books with a variety of tools.

One of the most popular accounting tools in the world, for small and medium-sized businesses. 

All-in-one invoicing and accounting solution designed for small to medium business owners and accountants.

Integrated cloud business software suite that includes business accounting, ERP, CRM, and e-commerce software.  

Cloud financial management and accounting software for small businesses.

Online accounting software for managing business finances.

For companies with product-market fit and predictable annual revenue of $100k or more, Pipe can enable you to connect with non-dilutive capital to finance growth. Connecting to your current systems and platforms helps us quickly determine the financial health of your business so you can get access to the capital you need to continue growing and running your business on your terms. 

These integrations are just the beginning. 

 to request integrations with other tools that may not yet be listed above. If you use another software but want to get started right away, Pipe also offers manual upload options via .csv files. 

For more information on how to use your recurring revenue to access non-dilutive up-front capital through Pipe, visit our 

page, or learn more about how Pipe works for 

What integrates with Pipe? From Plaid to GoCardless to Quickbooks, learn which apps and softwares securely connect with Pipe.

Pipe’s trading platform integrates with popular billing managers, banks, and accounting platforms to make accessing the capital you need easy.

See which platforms and services integrate with Pipe.

Pipe & Friends: What integrates with Pipe?

Integrations | Pipe Blog

If you’re looking to scale your company, you’ll need capital. 

And while traditional financing methods like bank loans and 

 can no doubt be helpful at certain stages of growth, these options don’t work in all situations. In fact, many entrepreneurs find themselves looking for a different fit when it’s time to fuel growth and scale up the business. 

The good news is that the startup financing landscape is changing, and today's founders have more options than ever to build their ideal capital stack. 

Download our new ebook, A Guide to Building Your Startup’s Capital Stack, to read all about it.

What’s in the book? Here’s a sneak peek…

challenges and opportunities facing startups

 and founders when it comes to accessing capital. We’ll cover 

options—from loans to angel investment—and how 

 can bridge common gaps. And, of course, we’ll tell you more about how 

If you’re looking to scale a startup with a well-designed capital stack that scales right along with you, 

Our new ebook explores how startup founders and CFOs can go beyond equity and debt to grow businesses on their terms.

This guide provides an overview of the most common financing options for startups, as well as tips on how to choose the right one for your business.

A guide to building your startup’s capital stack

If you’re looking to scale your company, you’ll need capital.

What’s in the book? Here’s a sneak peek…

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