Logistics provider Lalamove gets a capital boost
Lalamove, a same-day delivery and logistics provider in Southeast Asia and China, with a strong presence in Thailand, has recently completed its latest US$100 million (Bt3.3 billion) Series C funding round.
The latest investment comes as Lalamove Thailand is experiencing increasing demand for its on-demand services from the corporate sector, including restaurant delivery, as well as the domestic market.
The Lalamove app has been downloaded by hundreds of thousands of users in Thailand alone with over 15 million registered users across the platform's service area, the company said.
In September, Lalamove announced an upward trend in customers using its fleet of high-top pick-up trucks in Thailand, which are now standardised with high-tops and signage, with drivers wearing new Lalamove uniforms.
The round was led by ShunWei Capital, a venture capital firm that invests significantly in growth stage startups. Of the investment, Shunwei Capital Partner Cheng Tian said: “Lalamove is an important investment for us in the mobile logistics sector. We foresee strong growth in last-mile delivery and this has been reflected in Lalamove's growth and performance.
"In only a couple years, Lalamove's standardisation, speed of service, lean operations and execution strategies have all drastically improved efficiency, lending to their excellent reputation across Asia.
“Their resilience and continued efforts to innovate have allowed them to lead in the last-mile delivery business. Shunwei Capital is very proud to be partnering with Lalamove to help lead the way in modernising logistics by bringing the industry online.”
Lalamove’s latest investment round also includes participation from several previous investors including Xiang He Capital and MindWorks Ventures.
Lalamove leverages the power of the web, mobile app technology and the sharing economy to provide same-hours delivery services for SMEs that require fast, on-demand delivery services.
Lalamove offers the most comprehensive logistics and delivery coverage in Asia; in July 2017, the company reached a significant milestone of providing delivery in 100 cities.
Lalamove services over 15 million users and is supported by over 2 million drivers while continuing to expand rapidly across China and Southeast Asia.
Shing Chow, founder and CEO of Lalamove, says: “After our Series B, we set out an ambitious goal to achieve leading delivery coverage across Asia and we've managed to exceed our expectations. We will continue to quickly expand into cities where we feel we can provide the simplest and fastest delivery service in the market.”
Aside from market expansion, this new funding will also be used to make investments into talent across all parts of the organisation, to build new product features and to allow businesses more direct access to Lalamove’s large fleet of drivers.
Lalamove regional director – city operations, Santit Jirawongkraisorn, said Lalamove is growing as e-commerce grows regionally.
“The investment reflects the confidence of our investors and users in the Lalamove brand and the market. E-commerce is rising rapidly in Southeast Asia and we have seen a huge growth in Lalamove Thailand in terms of usage, around 600 per cent rise in 2016. We expect usage growth to be equally strong, if not more, this year as well.”
