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| With US$4.9 million venture capital lead by Sequoia Surge, logistics integrator Locad supports eCommerce fulfillment in the Philippines. |
Locad fills a critical gap in the present eCommerce state-of-play - Southeast Asia's fragmented, complex, and slow supply chain ecosystem - with a fully digital and integrated platform that provides real-time visibility over order and inventory movements. However, rather than helping companies with the appetite and ambition to expand outside borders, such gaps create hurdles.
Defining a better and more robust eCommerce fulfillment model
Locad, which opened operations in Australia, Hong Kong, India, the Philippines, and Singapore in October 2020, quickly created a reputation for itself in the logistics business. While many companies handle delivery difficulties at the first and last mile, only a handful offer the fully integrated solution that Locad is pioneering. Shopify, WooCommerce, Lazada, Shopee, and Zalora are just a few of the eCommerce platforms that Locad's business customers can link with. As a result, brands can manage all of their orders and inventory across different sales channels from a single virtual pool, with real-time insight into sales, orders, inventory, and service levels.
Brands can focus on building their business while Locad irons out the back-end operations of running a direct-to-consumer business.
"Since collaborating with Locad, our company has been able to focus on other parts of the business, such as product and marketing, rather than the fulfillment process." As a result, our sales and conversion rate have increased immediately.” KJM Cosmetics' Director of IT Operations, Janine Munez, stated. With the ability to fulfill orders faster and provide more affordable shipping rates to their customers, the Davao-based Filipino cosmetics brand reported that their conversion rate nearly doubled for both their Shopee and Lazada stores after partnering with Locad to provide localized fulfillment in Metro Manila, reducing delivery time and shipping fees for customers.
“ECommerce and on-demand delivery services are accelerating in the Philippines,” said CEO and co-Founder Constantin Robertz. Many vendors, producers, and sellers are moving to digital channels, but the logistics of getting products to customers remain a challenge. They also lack the infrastructure, resources, and experience needed to manage both online and in-house supply chains.” Locad is supporting eCommerce firms that will play a critical part in driving the Philippines' tremendous post-pandemic economic opportunity, thanks to the exponential expansion of eCommerce in Southeast Asia.
The essence of Locad's purpose is to level the playing field in direct-to-consumer commerce by providing brands of all sizes access to a simple yet scalable integrated, distributed, and flexible supply chain network. Our ability to provide a one-stop platform, from fulfillment capability to distributed warehousing, allows brands to meet the evolving needs of their customers with flexible, nimble, and pain-free logistics solutions. In an industry where reliability and speed can make or break an eCommerce brand, our ability to provide a one-stop platform, from fulfillment capability to distributed warehousing, allows brands to meet the evolving needs of their customers with flexible, nimble, and pain-free logistics solutions.
“In the Philippines, we now serve over 30 brands, assisting everyone from tiny enterprises to some of the country's top merchants in delivering tens of thousands of items each month. We're pleased to be able to provide logistics infrastructure to eCommerce firms of all sizes in these nations, and we'll continue to expand our presence throughout the region,” said Jannis Dargel, Locad's COO and Co-Founder.
Sequoia Surge's first investment in the Philippines
Sequoia, one of the world's leading venture capital firms, has funded renowned technology businesses (including Airbnb, Zoom, Youtube, Tokopedia, and others) since 1972, and Locad is their first Philippine Surge investment.
This investment will help Locad improve and expand its platform and fulfillment network, allowing its clients to achieve their eCommerce growth goals. With eCommerce expected to reach 76 percent prevalence in the Philippines by 2020, businesses will likely boost their use of Locad's comprehensive services as they attempt to improve their fulfillment infrastructure.
The additional funding will help Locad accelerate its technology development and provide better opportunities for businesses that choose the logistics cloud as their preferred platform for growing their direct-to-consumer business in eCommerce and omnichannel retail while also ensuring continuity for years to come. In addition, the integrated platform enables organizations to run a more seamless fulfillment infrastructure at low prices by maximizing Locad as the principal platform in performing and arranging the logistical demands associated with eCommerce.
Locad's shipping platform, which includes a wide range of integrated couriers, allows brands to deliver across the country. In contrast, its fulfillment network, which includes warehouses strategically located in Taguig, Paranaque, Laguna, Cebu, and Davao (opening soon), provides flexible fulfillment capacity and allows brands to reduce shipping time and costs by storing products closer to online shoppers. Locad will use the $4.9 million in seed capital to build its cloud logistics platform and work with additional Philippine businesses of all sizes. In addition, the company is expanding its regional footprint in Southeast Asia and Australia, giving Philippine enterprises a viable choice for regional expansion and making their products available to consumers throughout Asia-Pacific.
Founders Constantin Robertz, Jannis Dargel, and Shrey Jain got together to launch Locad after working in top capacities at Grab, Zalora, and Entrego for years in Southeast Asia's eCommerce, transportation, and logistics sector.
The seed investment round of Locad is led by Sequoia Capital India's Surge, with participation from Antler, Febe Ventures, Foxmont, Global Founders Capital, the Gokongwei Family, Hustle Fund, and angel investors from the Technology, eCommerce, and Logistics ecosystems, including Alessandro Duri (eCommerce, MEA), Paulo Campos (eCommerce, Zalora), Henry Ko and Huey Lin (Logistics, Flexport), Thibau (Technology, Venture Capital).
Surge's fifth batch of 23 firms includes Locad, which has developed new digital solutions to help businesses and individuals work, live, and learn more effectively in a fast-changing Southeast Asian landscape.
Customers can use Locad's services by contacting them here.