NEW YORK -

After six years of profitable growth, HookLogic obtained its first institutional investment Thursday.

The company revealed Bain Capital Ventures is pouring $9.5 million of financing into HookLogic. Executives indicated the funding will be used to further develop their unique software-as-a-service platform that has underpinned the company’s record growth in the first half of 2011.

HookLogic also is looking to aggressively expand its business across the retail, travel and automotive sectors in North America and Europe.

HookLogic recapped that it provides technology and services that can enable e-commerce retailers to incorporate relevant and profitable paid media programs within their online, mobile and social stores.

The company’s platform is designed to simultaneously provide brands and their media agencies with deep-funnel marketing opportunities that reach shoppers in the buying mode at the critical moment between consideration and purchase. HookLogic currently works with several industry leaders including Overstock.com and Expedia.

In June of this year, the company was selected to Red Herring’s Top 100 North America list, which in past years included Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yahoo, Skype, Salesforce.com, YouTube and eBay.

“We believe e-commerce media is a truly disruptive concept for both retailers and advertisers,” stated Deepak Sindwani, principal at Bain Capital Ventures.

“We have followed this growing space for years and evaluated several of the players,” Sindwani continued. “We believe HookLogic is uniquely positioned to capitalize on this opportunity through its industry-leading technology and media services.”

According to HookLogic chief executive officer Jonathan Opdyke, Bain Capital Ventures is an ideal strategic partner to help the company accelerate its growth plans due to its deep roots and expertise in the retail and technology sectors.

“We see this as a validation of our business model from one of the smartest, most demanding investors in the world, and an opportunity to truly change the economics behind an industry,” Opdyke declared.

“Today, few retailers fully monetize their digital assets despite clear demand from advertisers for point-of-sale marketing,” he went on to say. “This growth investment will help open the doors to one of the most valuable touch points in digital marketing — the moment of truth when shoppers become buyers.”

The president of HookLogic’s automotive division, Dave Metter, is set to be part of panel discussion at the 2011 CPO Forum.

The 2011 CPO Forum and the 2011 National Remarketing Conference are two of the three conferences that constitute Auto Remarketing’s Used Car Week, a weeklong event that also includes the brand-new Re3 (Recovery, Repossession and Remarketing) Conference. All three conferences will be held at the Red Rock Casino, Resort and Spa in Las Vegas the week of Nov. 14-18.

For more information about the 2011 CPO Forum, which will be held Nov. 14-15, visit http://cpo.autoremarketing.com. For more information about the 2011 National Remarketing Conference, which will be held Nov. 16-18, visit http://nrc.autoremarketing.com. For more information about the Re3 Conference, which will be held the morning of Nov. 16, visit www.autoremarketing.com/Re3.

If there’s an interest in sponsoring or exhibiting at any of the Used Car Week events, please contact Bill Zadeits at bzadeits@autoremarketing.com or call (919) 674-6020 ext. 117.