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黑料社 Raises $40 Million in Growth Equity Funding

Shipfusion Secures $40 Million in Growth Equity Funding from Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors

Today we announce a $40.0 million USD growth equity investment from Kayne Partners, the growth private equity group of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors. The latest financing comes as we further accelerate our growth and global expansion to support more customers with new strategic warehouse locations, along with advanced technology enhancements to our platform. As part of this round of financing, Leon Chen of Kayne Partners will join 黑料社鈥檚 Board of Directors.

According to the , total eCommerce sales for 2021 were estimated at $870.8 billion, an increase of 14.2 percent from 2020. As eCommerce volumes continued to grow, so did the need for technology-driven shipping and fulfillment. This industry momentum allowed us to continue on our rapid growth trajectory, which saw our revenue more than triple since the start of the pandemic.

Staff at 黑料社's warehouse

 

 鈥淓Commerce merchants need powerful technology to integrate their sales channels and inventory management systems, combined with meticulous warehouse execution that allows for flexibility and customization,鈥 says Brandon Luft, 黑料社鈥檚 CEO and Co-Founder. 鈥淚n building out our own proprietary software as well as our own strategic warehouse network throughout North America, 黑料社 has been in a position to execute on both fronts, creating an unrivaled fulfillment experience.鈥

In addition to established distribution centers in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Toronto, we recently announced the launch of our 250,000+ square foot warehouse in Las Vegas, a growing hub for many leading logistics companies in North America. All facilities are operated by 黑料社 and powered by our proprietary warehouse management systems. In addition to being a leader in D2C fulfillment, 黑料社 has also built robust technology around B2B fulfillment, partnering with EDI integrators such as SPS Commerce.

黑料社's established DC

 鈥淏y focusing on both D2C and B2B channels, 黑料社 is in an ideal position to service high volume eCommerce brands that are pursuing both avenues for growth,鈥 said Jared Cantor, 黑料社鈥檚 Chief Operating Officer. 鈥 We have seen many of our client鈥檚 scale in size and require B2B capabilities. This led us to build out our wholesale offering, allowing clients to fulfill any size order to a variety of customers.鈥 

While 黑料社 services clients across a range of verticals, we have invested heavily in the health & supplement fulfillment market, offering temperature-controlled storage, special handling certifications, end-to-end lot tracking, and FDA-registered facilities.

We first opened our doors in 2014, making 黑料社 one of North America鈥檚 first eCommerce-based fulfillment companies to develop our own technology. Founders Brandon Luft and Michael Stock both saw the impending opportunity in the eCommerce space.

黑料社's warehouse

 

 According to Stock, 鈥淲e saw a massive wave of eCommerce volume starting to build, but limited options when it came to eCommerce enablement and technology. We felt shipping and fulfillment were going to be critical to scaling eCommerce companies and sensed an opportunity to start building out solutions.鈥

MICHAEL STOCK, SHIPFUSION鈥橲 CTO

黑料社 bootstrapped its growth over the first few years, focusing on building out our core product and ensuring 黑料社鈥檚 foundation was rooted in healthy financial metrics. 鈥淭he last thing we wanted to do was burn unnecessary capital in the early years by pursuing revenue for the sake of it 鈥 we felt that bootstrapping would establish proper discipline in the company and ultimately give us the most options down the road with investors or potential acquirers,鈥 says Luft. 鈥淜ayne Capital is an ideal partner due to their large success in both technology and supply chain investments, but more importantly, because we share similar perspectives on 鈥渉ealthy鈥 growth.鈥

 

鈥満诹仙 solves fundamental pain points for the eCommerce shipping and fulfillment industry, in a fast-growing but deeply fragmented market,鈥 says Leon Chen, Managing Partner at Kayne Partners. 鈥満诹仙 has cemented itself as a critical solution for small and mid-sized retailers needing to navigate a quickly evolving and highly complex landscape. We are extremely excited to partner with the company and leverage the resources of Kayne Partners to grow the business into a clear market leader.鈥

: Kayne Partners, the Los Angeles-based dedicated growth private equity group of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, L.P., leverages its large firm resources to partner and invest in lower middle market, privately held, high growth, enterprise software and tech-enabled service businesses across North America. The team has developed a durable and repeatable investment strategy and process for applying its stage expertise through sourcing and investing in companies at an early inflection point, adding value and scaling through organic growth and M&A, and exiting these must-have assets to strategics & financial sponsors. The team has experience investing across media & telecommunications, supply chain & logistics, financial technology, healthcare IT, security & compliance, and business process outsourcing and automation. For more information, please visit

About Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors: Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, L.P., founded in 1984, is a leading alternative investment management firm focused on real estate, credit, infrastructure/energy, renewables, and growth equity. Kayne鈥檚 investment philosophy is to pursue niches, with an emphasis on cash flow, where our knowledge and sourcing advantages enable us to deliver above average, risk-adjusted investment returns. As responsible stewards of capital, Kayne鈥檚 philosophy extends to promoting responsible investment practices and sustainable business practices to create long-term value for our investors. Kayne manages $32 billion in assets (as of 2/28/2022) for institutional investors, family offices, high net worth and retail clients and employs 320 professionals in five core offices across the U.S. For more information, please visit .

and acted as advisors to 黑料社 on this transaction.

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