Shippit sets its sights on south-east Asia after $65 million Series B2 raise
“Capital raising is like Formula 1,” says Shippit chief executive Will On, after his company secured new funding to help fuel its continued expansion into Asia.
Aussie startup Shippit has completed a $65 million (US$48 million) Series B2 capital raise to power the logistics technology company into global markets and the first stop is Asia, the company says.
Shippit CEO Will On says the new funding will allow the company to scale in south-east Asia, building on its already rapid expansion in Singapore and Malaysia, which now accounts for 10% of total bookings on the platform.
“South-east Asia is the fastest growing e-commerce market in the world, and with a population twice the size of North America, it has limitless potential,” he tells SmartCompany.
On says there are plans to onboard a cohort of new staff in the region too, to allow Shippit, which is only eight years old, to scale without stuttering.
The funding round was co-led by Tiger Global and Tidal Ventures, with new investors SecondQuarter, Perennial and Mike Ford, the chairman and co-founder of Siteminder, also joining the cap table.
It comes on the back of a bumper year for Shippit. The startup’s software facilitated more than 40 million deliveries in 2021, which represented a 300% increase on pre-pandemic figures. It now has some 3,500 retailers on the books, including big name retail customers like Target, Myer, Cotton On and BIG W.
Earlier this year, Shippit also confirmed a high-profile partnership with Uber which has the potential to rewrite the rules for retail: a same-hour delivery promise available to millions of Australian customers via big retail digital shopfronts.
“Capital raising is like Formula 1”
Reflecting on the Shippit journey so far — from budding business to a $65 million raise — On tells SmartCompany there have been two big lessons.
“First of all, things take longer than you expect, but investing in the right people early on unlocks value to allow you to focus on where the fires are,” he says.
“As a founder you need to periscope in and out of the detail in so many areas. It’s crucial to think and act deliberately, though. This is a learned skill, and allows you to stay laser-focused on what you’re doing, why you’re doing it and how you’re doing it.”
And secondly, On continues, always be aware of market conditions.
“We were fortunate enough to have a board with an incredibly diverse skill set, which backed and unleashed our management team’s critical thinking and vision,” he says.
“Take capital raising, for example. Capital raising is like Formula 1; if you move too early you won’t get the valuation you’re after, but if you go too late you risk missing an opportunity altogether.
“Awareness of broader macro conditions, such as the overheating capital markets, meant we were able to foresee tightening investment in growth rounds and think holistically and strategically about what we wanted to achieve, and by when.”
Internally Shippit is going from strength to strength, with recent hires on its executive leadership from industry leaders like Xero, eBay, Afterpay and Atlassian.
Tidal Ventures’ partner Wendell Keuneman, a former founder and product leader at Atlassian, and managing partner Grant McCarthy say they are “thrilled to continue supporting the growth of Shippit by co-leading this round with Tiger Global”.
“We have huge conviction for the opportunity ahead both in Australia and South-east Asia,” McCarthy says.
“This funding will secure a substantial roadmap to deliver increasing value to merchants, the carrier network and recipients alike and continue to raise the bar on the logistics industry.”
In a time of global supply chain shortages fuelled in part by Russia and Ukraine’s war, and the pandemic particularly hitting China at the moment, On says he wants to bring “carriers, retailers and customers together in the leanest way possible to reduce waste and inefficiencies”.
Plus, he says, “in our evolving industry, standing still means moving backwards”. To that end, Shippit is doubling down on its commitment to help shape a sustainable e-commerce industry on a global scale.
“This raise allows us to move forward, ushering in the future our industry deserves,” he says.
On says he was also pleased all investors from its Series B round followed on this round — “an incredibly strong vote of confidence in the business; our momentum, our team, our customers and our vision for the future”.
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