Punchbowl Spiked With an Extra $2.1 Million

Punchbowl Software, the Framingham, MA, startup that runs the Web 2.0 party planning service MyPunchbowl (profiled here last October), has obtained its first major round of venture financing. The company raised $2.1 million from a group of investors including New York-based Contour Venture Partners and seed-round participants Intel Capital and eCoast Angels.

MyPunchbowl is designed to help event organizers and participants settle on a date, issue save-the-date notices and formal invitations, make party-supply checklists, and share after-party photos and videos. Its user base has grown more than 20 percent each month for the past year, according to a press release about the financing round.

The new funding will enable the company to hire more software developers and pursue new strategic and marketing opportunities, the company said. “In this tough economic climate, we’re really excited to have closed such a significant round of funding,” Punchbowl CEO Matt Douglas tells Xconomy. “This illustrates that a fundamentally sound business model combined with explosive user growth will still attract the best investors.”

Bob Greene, a co-managing partner at Contour, said in a statement that the firm was impressed by MyPunchbowl’s viral growth. “We see great opportunity for MyPunchbowl to continue to grow its leadership position in the party and event planning market,” he said.