Loot Crate has closed an $18.5 million Series A funding round, the company announced.  Six funds participated, led by Upfront Ventures, the largest Los Angeles-based venture fund, and including Breakwater Investment Management, Time Inc., Downey Ventures, M13, and Sterling.VC.  The company launched in late 2012 with $25,000 in seed funding; this is its first venture round.

Less than four years since launch, the company has already reached $100 million in annual sales, and venture funding means that it sees a big upside from here.  One area of expansion is international; while Loot Crate serves 35 countries, the company is planning to open United Kingdom offices this summer; the UK is its second largest market. 

Another potential area of expansion is in types of crates.  From its original Loot Crate of geek merch, the company has expanded to offer apparel, gaming, pets, and anime crates. 

And closer relationships to entertainment companies are also being cultivated to create exclusive advantages that can’t be matched by competitors.  “By partnering with the leading entertainment companies, Loot Crate is able to provide a fan driven commerce experience that's not available anywhere else,” Upfront Ventures partner Greg Bettinelli, who’s joining the Loot Crate board, said in the announcement.

As an example of such closer relationships, Loot Crate announced a “brand new integration” with the Halo franchise, and said that it plans to team with 343 Industries, part of Microsoft Studios, for a Halo-themed crate.