Amsterdam’s Cargoplot closes extended pre-Seed at over €1M

Amsterdam-based Cargoplot, an online platform for e-commerce importers and freight forwarders, announced on Monday, January 30, that it has closed its extended pre-Seed round of funding at over €1M last year. 

The round saw participation from ASIF Ventures and several angel investors. ASIF Ventures is an Amsterdam-based VC fund completely run by students. It is focused on students and recent graduates and has a ticket size of €25K to €100K.

The startup had raised €425K in May 2021.

Cargoplot: Everything you need to know

The company was founded in 2020 by Maarten de Reij and was later joined by Daniel Schreij and Henk-Jan Meijer. Cargoplot aims to help SMEs find the ‘best’ transport solution and streamline the process of transporting cargo in a cost-effective, transparent, and reliable way.

The company says that its platform uses Machine Learning (ML) to enable matches between the two parties, ensuring a freight forwarding partner who is able to get the cargo to the other side of the world in a timely and transparent manner.

Cargoplot earns a commission on the total transaction value when the shipment is completed. The commission is calculated according to trenches linked to the weight and type of cargo. 

In addition, pricing is also based on the quality and expertise of the freight forwarder. According to the company, requests for shipments are solely sent out to expert freight forwarders for that specific route and type of cargo.

De Reij mentions that the future revenue generation streams could include capitalisation on the data acquired, additional models such as affiliate sales of cargo space to freight forwarders, cargo insurance, and cargo financing.

Capital utilisation

Cargoplot used the funds to further develop its marketplace for transport services. After going live on the China-Netherlands corridor at the end of 2022, the company witnessed a 7-fold YoY increase in volume on this route.

Cargoplot’s focus on creating a worldwide network of reliable freight forwarders has enabled them to guarantee the delivery of goods even in the heated market conditions of the previous year. 

In addition to helping their clients, the company enables freight forwarders to expand into new markets and improve the efficiency of internal communications, adding value above and beyond lead creation.