Stord lands $400M credit facility to chase Amazon-level delivery
What's the deal? Stord, a logistics startup offering warehousing and fulfillment services, has secured a $400 million credit facility to scale its network and add new warehouse technologies. The facility is led by Citi, with Morgan Stanley, JPMorganDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, First CitizensDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Citizens BankDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and KeyBankDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → joining.
Why now? Stord, which ranked No. 2,032 on this year's Inc. 5000 list, is approaching $1 billion in revenue. It topped a $3 billion valuation in May after a $250 million Series F round.
What's the endgame? Chief executive officer and co-founder Sean Henry, 29, says the facility was oversubscribed by nearly twice the amount originally sought. He frames the raise as fuel for competing with Amazon on cost and speed for independent merchants.
"Scale is what enables the unit economics on low-cost delivery and it's what enables the speed of fast delivery: Both of those things enable Amazon-level deliveries and, therefore, consumer trust," Henry says.
By the numbers: Stord operates roughly 30 global fulfillment centers directly, rising to about 100 when counting hybrid partnerships. The company has grown since 2015, when Henry launched it with co-founder Jacob Boudreau, 28, while both were college students.
Where the money goes: Stord LabsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, an R&D hub at its Atlanta headquarters that trains autonomous robots, will get a boost. The company uses autonomous carts to help workers pick larger batches in a single trip, raising the pick rate. It is also investing in vision technology to tap existing cameras for security, safety, and training.
The signal: Banks competing to fund a logistics startup — the facility drew in six major lenders — signals confidence in Stord's bet that scale can bring Amazon-style delivery to smaller merchants.
Read more: inc.com
