Waresix secures US$1.6mil in Pre-series A funding

• Round was led by East Ventures and Monk’s Hill Ventures with SMDV and Triputra Group
• Will use funds to improve warehouse efficiency, expand business offerings and hire new staff

WARESIX, an Indonesia-based on-demand (SaaS) warehouse service provider, on Oct 9 announced the closing of a US$1.6 million (RM6.6 million) Pre-A series round of financing led by East Ventures and Monk’s Hill Ventures. Also participating in the round are SMDV and Triputra Group.               

This follows their previous seed round in February 2018 and reflects the company’s rapid traction over the past seven months. Waresix will use the proceeds from the financing to improve warehouse efficiency through technology and data solutions, expand business offerings and hire new staff.

Founded in September 2017, Waresix is dedicated to providing efficient and streamlined warehouse services, connecting businesses and individuals in need of warehouse space with professional warehouse operators.

Through the Waresix marketplace, companies can quickly search through a wide range of warehousing options and book a warehouse space in less than 24 hours to meet their business needs.

In addition, Waresix also provides cross-border warehousing services for overseas customers looking to not only distribute their product in Indonesia but also provide warehouse space to manage unexpected last-minute situations. As a one-stop service provider, customers can use the Waresix platform to manage their warehouse distribution, inventory, customer orders, and billing cycles.

The Waresix team is led by co-founders Andree Susanto (CEO), Filbert (CTO) and Edwin (CFO), three former schoolmates who met as engineering students at UC Berkeley eight years ago. The team aims to tap into Indonesia’s burgeoning logistics market, which is estimated to be worth US$240 billion (RM996.86 billion) and growing 14% annually.

Of this market, warehouse needs and fulfillment account for 16% of economic activity, equal to a total market size of over US$30 billion. This segment is expected to grow substantially alongside Indonesia’s rapidly growing e-commerce sector.

Waresix currently covers 26 cities, including Greater Jakarta, Semarang, Surabaya, Balikpapan, Samarinda, Banjarmasin, Makassar, Pekanbaru and others across the Indonesian archipelago.

The company’s marketplace includes over 75 professional warehouse operators that handle general cargo, retail fulfillment, and cold storage.

With this round of financing, Waresix will continue to leverage its technology and data capabilities to drive increased efficiency for the overall warehousing industry. The company will develop new products and features for both warehouse customers and providers to better meet their storage needs. Waresix will also bring on new talents to facilitate company growth.

Andree said, “we are very excited to work with our new investors. They will give us an edge and help us tremendously in expanding our business.

“The team is also excited for the contoured support given by our previous investors and welcome the new investors with open arms,” added ​Edwin.

Willson Cuaca, managing partner at East Ventures, said, “​supply chain and infrastructure challenges are natural causal effects for Indonesia being the world's largest archipelago with around 17,000 islands.

“As Indonesia’s e-commerce industry grows at extremely fast pace, it is important to ensure that movement of goods is as efficient as possible- which made warehousing industry an inevitable part of supply chain optimisation. Waresix is able to crack the industry by helping not only business operators to find the suitable warehouses in multiple cities in Indonesia; but also warehouse owners to maximise their asset utilisation and return with the hassle-free approach.

“The past seven months has convinced us even more that the team has the capability to champion the market, and we are excited to see more nationwide breakthrough driven by Waresix​.” 

“We are impressed by the founding team at Waresix and their vision. Logistics is a fast-growing sector increasingly driven by technology changes, on both the demand and supply side,” said ​Kuo-Yi Lim, managing partner a tMonk’s Hill Ventures.

“Waresix’s combination of domain expertise and technology know-how puts them in a strong position. We are pleased to be working with the founders and our co-investors in this endeavour.”