The startup that manages ecommerce warehouses without having one
The round was led by industry specialists from Cambridge Capital with the participation of Speedinvest, Mouro Capital, Elevator Ventures and other shareholders. The new funding will be used to pursue byrd's mission of enabling ecommerce retailers to deliver their orders to customers across Europe in a single day. By enabling fully automated logistics for online retailers and ensuring access to an international logistics network, byrd now allows merchants to reach Italian customers and offer them fast shipping options to neighboring countries as well as storage and shipping systems with organic certification with couriers such as Poste Italiane, GLS and BRT.
“This capital increase is the confirmation that our lenders understand the strong potential for expansion of the byrd technology. The pan-European network is constantly expanding and allows you to be closer to your customers with targeted stocks and visible in real time in strategic locations, reducing costs and transit times - commented Riccardo Marchica, head of the Italian division as a Country Manager. The senior manager in the transport and supply chain sector with over 10 years of experience in Sales and Operation management (from DB Schenker to C.H. Robinson) also added: "The solutions offered apply to both large companies that want to build or improve the own omnichannel management with scalable solutions and close to its customers, both to SMEs that want to automate warehouse and shipping management with packaging customization services, allowing them to stay focused on their key skills ".
Byrd in fact manages a network of warehouses throughout Europe for the supply of fulfillment services to online retailers through a proprietary software platform. The software is used by partner warehouses and integrates seamlessly with ecommerce platforms such as Shopify and Amazon. Byrd already serves the UK, France, Germany, the Netherlands and Austria and from today also Italy and Spain. The new funds will be used to strengthen byrd's presence in existing markets, by expanding local teams, and to expand to Sweden, Denmark and Poland by the end of the year. All of this will create the largest connected and independent e-commerce fulfillment network in Europe, with over 30 warehouses in 10 countries.
Alexander Leichter, CEO and co-founder of byrd, explained: “Ecommerce retailers are increasingly suffering pressure from consumers to deliver as fast as possible and free of shipping charges. At the same time, shrinking global supply chains are putting increasing pressure on margins and creating significant delivery problems. This means that retailers are looking for fulfillment services that are scalable and capable of covering their core markets internationally. When we were contacted by Cambridge Capital we realized it was time to combine the significant momentum we have seen over the past year with their technology-enabled logistics investment experience in order to accelerate our growth plans. "
Matt Smalley, Director of Cambridge Capital, who has joined the board of byrd, added: “byrd is one of the fastest growing companies we have ever seen, in what we believe is the strongest 'unit economy' in the world. We were convinced by its technology-based approach and proprietary warehouse management software that allows it to manage a fulfillment network with low fixed assets. We liked its wide coverage of the European market, excellent customer success and the great satisfaction of both retailers and partner warehouses ".
As far as technology is concerned, Series C funding will allow the company to add new features to its offering and broaden its potential market, while increasing the value provided to the growing customer base of online retailers. byrd will also launch support for Amazon's "Seller Fulfilled Prime" program to tap into Amazon's vast market of successful sellers who are looking for an alternative to FBA (Fulfillment by Amazon). byrd is also expanding its B2B capabilities across the network: the company will invest significant resources in new integrations with additional store systems, ERP systems and other order management software, such as Xentral for the German market and PrestaShop for France. By the end of 2022, byrd expects to have 400 employees across Europe and the UK, with offices in Berlin, Vienna, London, Paris, Barcelona and Milan. After closing the Series B round last summer, byrd has doubled its customer base and average revenue per customer, serving brands such as Freeletics, Durex and Campari. Byrd's total warehouse capacity across Europe has also nearly tripled to nearly 450,000 square meters.
