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In 2016, some $460 billion worth of counterfeit goods, according to the International Trademark Association. Not surprisingly, most of those transactions took place online.

To tackle this problem, , a three-time Super Bowl Champion and NFL Analyst, launched Dallas-based. The startup recently closed on a $1 million-plus round of funding and has signed on nearly 50 brands as customers. Dallas-based led the round, which also included participation from, Austin-based, and, managing partner at Westcott LLC.

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Having grown up in inner city Phoenix, Woodson takes the problem of counterfeiting personally.

鈥淚 know what it feels like to be robbed or taken advantage of,鈥� he told 萝莉视频 News. 鈥淎nd I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. We love being the e-commerce police.鈥�

CounterFind鈥檚 early clients are a high-profile bunch and include the Dallas Cowboys, Universal Music Group, WWE, and California rock band Linkin Park. Linkin Park was so impressed with CounterFind鈥檚 offerings it became an investor in the company as well. And they are not the only customer to take a stake, according to, founder of Dallas-based Deep Space Ventures.

鈥淥ne of the things that struck me is that a significant portion of its earliest customers have become investors,鈥� Hays told 萝莉视频 News. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 always a signal to me that something interesting is going on here. When I see a customer or a partner ask for investment rights, it鈥檚 always a good sign that somebody is on to something.鈥�

CounterFind isn鈥檛 the only company in the space addressing this problem. But what sets it apart, according to Hays and CounterFind officials, is that it provides customized software that not only identifies counterfeit merchandise on Amazon and Facebook, but actually also gets the items taken down.

鈥淥ur Internet-based software plugs directly into each platform鈥檚 API, uses a proprietary filtering formula to find counterfeit merchandise in real-time and then shuts it all down,鈥� said Rachel Aronson, CounterFind鈥檚 vice president of sales and business development. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not a broad Internet company that does the same thing for everyone.鈥�

Woodson initially hired an offshore development team to build out the technology.

鈥淒arren saw a real opportunity here to solve this problem, which is a big one for the legal teams of all major brands including NFL teams, sports teams in general and those in the entertainment industry,鈥� Aronson told 萝莉视频 News. 鈥淲ith his extensive network, we were able to essentially hand-deliver the software to the people who needed it.鈥�

Startups Disrupt Counterfeit

As more brands grow disgruntled with the prevalence of counterfeit products online, the issue is also for Amazon itself in addition to brands. For example, German footwear giant Birkenstock was one of the first to make a bold move. On Jan. 1, 2017, it stopped allowing listings of its products on Amazon due to counterfeits.

An increasing number of startups are being created to address this problem through technology. Other companies in the space include Barcelona-based , which earlier this month in a Series B round led by Northzone. Los Angeles-based, which describes itself as an online brand protection platform that automates the monitoring and enforcement of counterfeit products and more, raised $550,000 in a seed round of funding in January 2016. New York-based also offers an online brand protection system and has raised a total of nearly $1.5 million since inception.

Woodson believes the fact that CounterFind is based in the United States gives it an advantage over its 萝莉视频 competitors.

鈥淲e already have a lot of those relationships,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e know exactly what they want. And we do it with a passion.鈥�

CounterFind plans to use the money it just raised to scale its business and expand its development team, according to COO. The company also has plans to expand its offering to other marketplaces as well as build awareness.

鈥淎 lot of these brands just don鈥檛 know so we also still have to educate,鈥� Woodson said. 鈥淯ltimately, we want to serve as their insurance policy of sorts. So they don鈥檛 have to worry about the problem at all.鈥�

CounterFind also aims to make the experience personalized for each brand.

鈥淪ome want more control in the process and others want us to be their eyes,鈥� Woodson added. 鈥淔or example, the Dallas Cowboys are a totally different brand than WWE. So we鈥檙e able to personalize the shutdown process for them based on their needs and wishes.鈥�

Deep Space Ventures鈥� Hays believes the prevalence of counterfeit merchandise has created a huge market opportunity for companies like CounterFind. Companies today have to go through an arduous process to get counterfeit merchandise removed.

鈥淭hey have to hire a lawyer, send a cease and desist letter,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t can take a while. But CounterFind automates the process and saves customers both time, and money because the faster you get those products down, the less fake products get sold.鈥�

Hays is also impressed with the company鈥檚 traction in a short amount of time.

鈥淚n just a few months, their growth has been incredible,鈥� Hays said. 鈥淭he company鈥檚 monthly revenue is already far beyond what you鈥檇 expect for a seed stage company.鈥�

, co-founder and executive director of Austin-based , agreed. (Side note: Baer first heard about CounterFind when Woodson reached out to him via Twitter and was 鈥渋mmediately intrigued.鈥�) Capital Factory recently to Dallas.

鈥淭hey have accomplished a lot without much funding so far, which makes me really excited to see what they accomplish now that they will have some new energy and resources behind them,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his is a big problem that will continue to get bigger as more and more retail moves online.鈥�

, principal of Dallas-based , believes Woodson鈥檚 charisma will lend itself well to CounterFind鈥檚 success.

鈥淗e sets a great tone in building a great company culture,鈥� he said.

Plus, the ease of use and implementation of CounterFind鈥檚 offering has been a point of emphasis, Garcia added.

鈥淪ince this is such a large problem when they present an 鈥榚asy button鈥� for brands and customers to try, it is usually a quick decision to sign up and give it a go,鈥� he told 萝莉视频 News.

Assuming that CounterFind can stay on its trajectory, its future looks good. The problem of counterfeit goods clearly , and it seems that more startups are popping up to address the challenge.

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