Suppli, the digital accounts receivable platform that enables construction suppliers to turn their credit department into a competitive advantage, today announced it has raised $3.1 million in seed funding.
Equal Ventures led the round, with additional participation from Audacious Ventures, Dash Fund, Chase Gilbert (CEO of Built Technologies) and Ali Javid (CEO of Wrapbook).
While over $500 billion of construction materials are sold in the U.S. each year, many vendors rely on manual paperwork, homemade spreadsheets or dated software solutions that don’t address the unique workflows of this industry or meet the demands of an increasingly digital customer base. In fact, by 2024, 60 percent of material buyers will be digital natives, according to U.S.
BLS Employment Projections. Currently, paying for construction materials requires, on average, more than 15 documents for each sale, it takes about 83 days to get paid in construction, and more than 40 percent of suppliers don’t offer online payment.
Enter Suppli, the only software solution that empowers independent material suppliers and distributors to turn routine account management and payment tasks into a delightful, digital customer experience that competes with national and big box suppliers.
“The big brands like Builders FirstSource, Home Depot and Lowes are hiring thousands of software engineers and investing billions in customer-facing technology to capture these modern buyers. Simply having an online payment portal isn’t enough. Suppli levels the playing field for independent vendors allowing them to offer a comprehensive solution with features like text-based payments, automated lien waiver requests, one-click deposits, full mobile-responsiveness and more,” said Ryan Ayers, Suppli co-founder.
“We are 100 percent focused on material vendors which enables us to deliver these last mile features, build true integrations with industry ERPs and charge a simple flat fee similar to what most vendors pay for just basic payment processing today. With this investment, we’ll be able to significantly grow headcount, offer new services and accelerate product development.”
Suppli also empowers construction credit and finance professionals with the modern tools they deserve to manage accounts more efficiently, freeing them to focus on value-added customer service. This is particularly critical given today’s tight labor market and the need for vendors to attract younger workers who demand the latest software.
“The construction industry has traditionally not relied upon technology and as the industry begins its digitization process, Suppli is at the forefront of that digital transformation by enabling material suppliers to digitize their payment flows and for the first time provide their customers with a payment and credit flow that they are used to seeing in their personal lives,” commented Richard Kerby, co-founder of Equal Ventures.
Suppli’s co-founders previously ran a material distributor in Texas where they experienced first-hand the challenges and complexities facing material vendors on a daily basis. “We built Suppli as the software we always wanted for ourselves but could never find,” said Thanasi Skafidas, Suppli co-founder. “Trade credit is the lifeblood of a material vendor, but is often viewed as a ‘back office’ function. Suppli turns the credit relationship into a competitive advantage by making it convenient, seamless and less risky.”
Since publicly launching in Q4 2022, Suppli’s active customer count is already in the double digits, and top material suppliers across the country, ranging from lumberyards to insulation contractors and beyond, are using the platform to power credit and payments for their combined 50,000-plus end customers. The new financing will allow Suppli to build on this momentum and expand its team and product offerings with multiple new features and financial products planned for this year.
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