New York – Portuguese fashion logistics startup HUUB has just raised 1.5
million euro from the Danish shipping giant Maersk. The new funding follows
on a 2.5 million euro investment from Pathena in 2018.
“We knew we were in an interesting place to negotiate a new investment
before the next round – the Series A,” said Luís Roque, Co-founder & CEO of
HUUB. “We were looking for “smart money”, which means we wanted to ensure
that, besides having the financial capabilities, our new partner could also
bring value to the company. Maersk Growth undoubtedly represents the
biggest player in this industry, and we are sure that they will continue to
be a fundamental partner in HUUB’s growth.”
With the funding, HUUB plans to triple the number of brands it has in
its portfolio, expand its European logistics operations, and grow its team
to further develop its commercial strategies and technology.
“At Maersk Growth we are happy to join HUUB on its journey forward,”
said Tobias Elmquist, Partner at Maersk Growth. “We have been following
HUUB and were impressed with its solution to the supply chain for fashion
brands and its fast growth both in terms of customers and revenue.
Leveraging Maersk’s industry expertise and global network we look forward
to supporting HUUBs plans to further accelerate business growth.”
Porto-based HUUB platform integrates with e-commerce sites, providing a
full range of logistics solutions including production follow-up, picking,
storage, stock management, order fulfillment, packing, and shipping. HUUB’s
algorithms also analyse sales to determine replenishment strategies and
prevent understocking, as explained by the logistics company in its
corporate website.
Commenting the news, Vítor Dinis, Managing Partner and CFO of Pathena,
an earlier investor in HUUB, recalled that “Ever since we lead last year’s
investment round, we knew that there would be an opportunity to strengthen
this seed with a relevant strategic partner.” “Maersk Growth is exactly
that player, which not only brings financial support but also the global
structure needed to accompany HUUB’s global growth. We are very pleased
with how this cycle has been closed, with values that certainly impress not
only on the national context but mostly on European and global levels.”
With this new round, HUUB closes its early-stage investment cycle with a
total of 4.35 million euro, the largest seed round raised by a Portuguese
startup to date, highlights the specialised news portal ‘EU Startups’.
HUUB plans to close 2019 with a revenue of 3.5 million euro, which
represents a year-on-year growth of circa 200 percent.
