Flexport (YC W14) raises $6.9M to reinvent global trade

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-05-11/flexport-wants-to-be-uber-of-the-oceans

by thedogeye • 11 years ago

86 20 11 years ago

bloomberg.com

thedogeye5• 11 years ago

Actually we don't want to be Uber of the oceans, but we like being compared to Uber nonetheless.

totalrobe• 11 years ago

What's on your roadmap? Brokerage services are only a small piece of the GTM space.

_euac• 11 years ago

I love the idea of Flexport. It's one of the few startups in the latest batches that I can see as positively changing the world and has a great chance of being the next $1bn+ company.

dang• 11 years ago

We merged this thread and https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9525610. The bloomberg.com article is more informative, so we'll use that URL instead of https://learn.flexport.com/weve-raised-money-to-reinvent-glo....

emmiechang• 11 years ago

Get it Ryan! You rock ;)

nulltype• 11 years ago

He's like the Uber of startup founders.

randall• 11 years ago

Now we all know who's going to sponsor the next YC ski trip :)

Finbarr• 11 years ago

Great work - congrats Ryan and team!

rcarrigan87• 11 years ago

I've experienced the pain of international freight shipping before. It's a process that could definitely use some tech.

This article felt kind of puffy though. No mention of competitors or what else is going on in the space.

What specifically puts flexport in the best position to solve this problem?

CyberDildonics• 11 years ago

You don't think 6.9 million is enough to reinvent global trade?

ripberge• 11 years ago

I had this same exact startup idea as well after having issues with customs brokers and all the stupid faxing, bond issues, freight issues, etc. Its incredibly archaic.

I actually did try to use Flexport really early on for one shipment and it was very buggy and basically a total disaster, had to abort and use my old broker. They seem like they're a smart team and they'll get it right though.

I think "re-inventing global trade" is a bit of hyperbolic marketing speak, but in regards to re-inventing customs brokerage they are in the best position to solve this problem because the founder Ryan Petersen is a co-founder of import genius. Therefore they have an incredible database of importers to market their brokerage services to.

And that database and expertise is why I abandoned that business plan :)

thedogeye5• 11 years ago

Sorry to hear that. We've come a long way. Email me ryan@flexport.com I'd love to hear what went wrong and how we can learn from it. We'll hook you up if you're ever brave enough to try us again.

thedogeye5• 11 years ago

Agreed, there is real room for someone to do in-depth coverage of us, our product, and why we're so different from the rest of the companies in our industry.

The short answer is that it has to do with data. Rather than printing every document and storing it in a file cabinet, we normalize and structure it in our database, and then make it available to the various parties in the chain on a need-to-know basis. Remarkable how much more efficient that is than passing PNGs, PDFs, XLSs, and even paper documents off as the goods move.

codex_irl• 11 years ago

Great news, I remember you guys from startup school last year, sounded like an interesting product & market at the time. Congratulations!

seddona• 11 years ago

Congrats guys, love the product!

clintboxe2• 11 years ago

I worked at a large public 3PL for 8 years before joining a VC backed startup and at first glance the logistics industry seems ripe for disruption by smaller tech-driven companies. I'm super excited that there are companies out there trying to change the industry. My gut feeling however is that the large incumbents have long relationships, tons of cash, and people on the ground in hundreds of countries around the world. Those things might make it difficult for a startup. How do companies like flexport plan to compete with the Expeditors and CH Robinson's of the world? The place I worked would probably benefit greatly by acquiring a company like this and integrating their tech, but the culture would never allow that to happen.

thedogeye5• 11 years ago

We are winning deals from Expeditors and CH Robinson almost every day.

clintboxe2• 11 years ago

Nice, good luck!

ellisonf9• 11 years ago

Ryan: was curious how many times you applied to YC before getting in?

thedogeye5• 11 years ago

I only applied once although I would guess that 1/3 of my batch had been rejected previously, so don't be discouraged if you don't get in on the first try. Remember you don't need anybody's permission to build a great company.

Flexport (YC W14) raises $6.9M to reinvent global trade

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