Seven figures in annual recurring revenue within twelve months is a number that gets investors to listen. For Iris Finance, a Chicago-based startup, it is the proof point for a bet that consumer packaged goods brands are ready to trade their spreadsheets for an AI-native CFO. The company has onboarded hundreds of CPG clients, according to its own reporting, and secured a $6.2 million seed round to scale its core wedge: a proprietary database built specifically for the messy, multi-channel reality of selling physical products [Iris Finance, retrieved 2026] [Beauty Independent, November 2025].
The CPG Data Wedge
Iris Finance is not a generic financial planning tool. Its product is an FP&A and CFO platform designed from the ground up for companies that manage inventory, with a sharp focus on consumer brands in beauty, wellness, and food. The differentiation rests on Iris DB, a proprietary system that automatically ingests, normalizes, and enriches data from a brand's operational stack. This includes sales data from retail partners like Walmart and Target, e-commerce platforms like Shopify, marketing spend from Facebook Ads, and even corporate card transactions [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief].
The promise is to replace a fragmented toolkit of ETL pipelines, data warehouses, and manual spreadsheets with a single source of truth. For a CFO or COO at a growing CPG brand, the platform delivers real-time margin tracking, automated cash-flow forecasting, and profit-and-loss visibility down to the SKU level across all sales channels. The company claims this automation saves months of engineering effort and eliminates data cleaning entirely [Iris Finance, retrieved 2026].
Founders Who Felt the Pain
The founding team's background reads as a direct response to the problem they are solving. CEO Drew Fallon was previously the COO and co-founder of Mad Rabbit, a tattoo aftercare brand. He has firsthand experience with the financial planning headaches of a high-growth CPG company. His recognition on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Food & Drink 2026 list has brought further visibility to the venture [Forbes, December 2025].
He is joined by Alexander Heckmann, a three-time founder whose cybersecurity company clean.io was acquired by Human Security, and Marko Iwanik as CTO, who previously worked in product at redaction software firm Milyli [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief]. This blend of CPG operational experience and technical founder pedigree was a key factor for early investors.
| Founder | Role | Prior Experience |
|---|---|---|
| Drew Fallon | CEO | COO/Co-founder, Mad Rabbit (CPG brand) |
| Alexander Heckmann | COO | Founder, clean.io (acquired by Human Security) |
| Marko Iwanik | CTO | Product, Milyli (redaction software) |
Traction and the Funding Stack
Iris Finance moved quickly from launch to scaled commercialization. The company reports it reached seven-figure ARR and onboarded hundreds of CPG brands within its first year of operation [Iris Finance, retrieved 2026]. LinkedIn data indicates the client base has since scaled to over 100 enterprise customers [LinkedIn, retrieved 2026]. This traction formed the foundation for a $6.2 million seed round announced in September 2025.
The round was led by Glasswing Ventures, a firm with a track record in AI and enterprise software. It included participation from Founder Collective, Hyde Park Angels, Revolution's Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, Barrel Ventures, Rosecliff Ventures, and SID Venture Partners [Beauty Independent, November 2025]. Total disclosed funding to date stands at approximately $9.7 million.
Pre-seed (May 2024) | Undisclosed | M USD
Seed (Sep 2025) | 6.2 | M USD
The Crowded Field of FP&A
No analysis of Iris Finance is complete without sizing up the competitive pressure. The market for financial planning software is dense with established players. Anaplan, Workday Adaptive Planning, and Vena Solutions serve large enterprises. Cube and Planful target the mid-market. Drivetrain and Datarails are also competing for the attention of finance teams.
The risk for Iris is that these well-funded incumbents could build or buy CPG-specific capabilities, or that potential customers may default to a known, generalist vendor. Iris's answer is its vertical specificity. The platform's value is not just in analysis, but in the pre-built, CPG-optimized data schema of Iris DB,a moat built from understanding the unique data shapes of consumer brands, from cohort insights to channel-level margins. The bet is that a dedicated, AI-native platform can out-execute a bolt-on module from a broader vendor.
The Next Twelve Months
The roadmap ahead is aggressive. The company has stated an aim to serve approximately 200 clients by the end of 2025 and, within a year after that, expand to 1,000 brands representing an estimated $8-10 billion in gross merchandise value [Startup Intros]. This would represent a fivefold increase from its current reported client base. Execution will hinge on continuing to automate the most painful financial workflows for operators and proving that its platform can scale with brands as they grow from direct-to-consumer startups into omnichannel players.
The $6.2 million seed from Glasswing Ventures and others provides the fuel. The question for the next year is whether Iris Finance can convert its early wedge,a database that speaks the language of CPG,into a defensible category leader. Can it own the CFO's dashboard for the next generation of consumer brands?
Sources
- [Beauty Independent, November 2025] Iris Finance Raises $6.2M In Seed Funding To Become CPG Brands’ AI-Powered CFO | https://beautyindependent.com/iris-finance-raises-6-2m-in-seed-funding-to-become-cpg-brands-ai-powered-cfo/
- [Forbes, December 2025] 30 Under 30 Food & Drink 2026: Meet The Entrepreneurs Changing How America Eats | https://www.forbes.com/sites/chloesorvino/2025/12/02/30-under-30-food--drink-2026-meet-the-entrepreneurs-changing-how-america-eats/
- [Iris Finance, retrieved 2026] Company Website | https://www.irisfinance.co/company
- [LinkedIn, retrieved 2026] Company LinkedIn Profile | https://www.linkedin.com/company/irisfinance
- [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief] Iris Finance Company Brief
- [Startup Intros] Iris Finance: Funding, Team & Investors | https://startupintros.com/orgs/iris-finance
- [Yahoo Finance, September 2025] Iris Finance Raises $6.2M to Scale AI-Native CFO Platform for CPG Brands | https://finance.yahoo.com/news/iris-finance-raises-6-2m-110000021.html