Rotterdam is the second largest city in the Netherlands and the port city is also known for its high-tech architecture and living, as compared to the other traditional Dutch cities.
While, Amsterdam, Delft and Eindhoven are known for being a competitive startup locations, Rotterdam is gaining quite a buzz since last couple of years. The city has already gained a nickaname of the ‘Boston of the Netherlands’ and now recently founders of startups like Helloprint and coworking space 42workspace have created the initiative WeTechRotterdam to bring-in the tech community together.
Further, with the support from Cambridge Innovation Center, Erasmus Center for Entrepreneurship, data specialist Dealroom and various large institutions in the field of education, entrepreneurship and investment, the business climate for tech companies in Rotterdam is getting healthy in 2018.
Today, at Silicon Canals, we take a look at the most exciting tech startups of the shining city which are rocking the tech scene in the Netherlands and have received staggering funding amounts to grow further. So lets start!
#1 Coolblue (Total funding: €140-€170M)
Well, the Dutch online retailer of the Netherlands, Coolblue has more than 350 online shops and seven physical retail stores in the country. One of the biggest competitors to bol.com and Amazon Prime on the Dutch soil, Coolblue sells consumer electronics in the Netherlands and Belgium.
Founded in 1999 by Pieter Zwart, together with Paul de Jong and Bart Kuijpers, the company reportedly got a total funding of €140-€170 million in a series D round from HAL Investments for 20 percent of the company. So Coolblue definitely is part of our rockstar list.
#2 MetrixLab (Total funding: €75.5M)
Another company which deserves to be mentioned is MetrixLab – global market research agency – the company turns data from surveys, social media and enterprise systems into actionable insights and helps leading brands to drive innovation, as well as brand and customer engagement.
Headquartered in Rotterdam and San Francisco with 15 offices across the US, Europe, and Asia, MetrixLab provides analytics and insights services in more than 50 countries. Endeit Capital co-invested with well-known angel investor and entrepreneur Bodo Douqué. Including the Series D and E round, the company has already received a funding of around € 75.5 million.
#3 Helloprint (Total funding: €3M+)
Helloprint claims to be Europe’s fastest growing print platform with activities in 10+ European countries. As the only print platform in Europe, Helloprint aims to combine several international print producers with all the numerous clients across Europe.
Founded in 2013, Helloprint grew to an annual revenue of 30 million euro, with a growth rate of 3.000% over the last three years. As listed on Dealroom, Helloprint has received a total funding of €3million, however, if going by the industry experts, the company did two big undisclosed rounds as well.
#4 Housing Anywhere (Total funding: €5.9M)
Started by students from the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University in Rotterdam in 2009, Housing Anywhere is an online platform which allows students to sublet their rooms to exchange students. The platform gained popularity in Rotterdam in 2010 and got spread through word of mouth to the other universities in followed by Copenaghen, Stockholm, Barcelona and Sao Paulo. Currently, they are active in 21 different countries including USA, Brasil, Sweden, and Spain among others.
Housing Anywhere has already scooped a €5.9 million series A round to finance its international growth. The funding was led by Real Web, a company behind the Italian real estate platform Immobiliare.it. Meanwhile, Dutch VC HenQ has also invested in Housing Anywhere in the seed stage.
#5 InvoiceSharing (Total funding: €1.4M)
InvoiceSharing aims to replace paper invoices with a digital one. It is a free electronic invoice distribution platform to connect accountings system. Through the platform, accounting and invoice scanning software companies send and receive electronic invoices directly from their system to their client systems.
The platform has already received a funding of €1.4 million as it aims to connect systems and distribute invoices for free to make revenues from the sale of premium products.
#6 Travis the Translator (Total funding: €1.1M)
Travis is a pocket size device that you can just put on the table between you and the person or persons you are talking with. If they are speaking in one of the eighty languages that Travis understands, the device will translate the words directly into your language. The device may eventually replace human interpreters or inaccurate translation machines.
This year, the Dutch startup from Rotterdam did crowdfunding on Indiegogo and now the company has a total funding of € 1.1 million. Travis is making some great waves in the market, the gadget is almost surreal.
#7 MP Objects (Total funding: €9.1M)
Founded by Martin Verwijmeren, CEO, and Paul van Dongen, CTO, MP Objects (MPO) offers cloud-based software that allows users to manage and optimize individual customer orders through complex and global supply chains. In its first outside equity funding, the company raised € 9.1million, where Updata Partners made the investment.
Based out of Rotterdam, MPO is used by leading brands like IBM, eBay and logistics service providers for millions of orders to create and manage dynamic supply chain configurations that meet each customer’s unique requirements. The tech startup is definitely rocking the industry aims to further expand into the United States to scale its marketing and sales.
#8 Sensara (Total funding: €3.8M)
Sensara empowers senior citizens and differently-abled people to enjoy their independence in a safe and healthier manner. Sensara alerts, signals and advices family and/or caregivers when needed through self-learning algorithms monitor and verified sensors. The information is sent as a notification to alert the caretakers or family members via mobile application.
Founded in 2013 as a spin-off of TNO, a Dutch research organization, and led by Reinout Engelberts, CEO, Sensara has already got an investment of €3.8million by KPN Ventures with participation from Van Herk Ventures and the company’s management. The Rotterdam-based startup is using the funds to scale up sales, continue product development, broaden customer service and expand internationally.
#9 Quantib (Total funding: €4.5M)
The AI analytical startup Quantib provides quantification and segmentation of MRI brain scans. The company led founded in 2012, develops machine learning medical imaging applications that allow physicians and researchers to make more accurate diagnoses more efficiently. The successful Dutch startup has already raised €4.5 million in a round led by Holland Venture and InnovationQuarter and aims to use the funding to introduce new ML applications to the market and expand internationally.
PLEASE NOTE: The funding amounts have been sourced from the official site of WeTechRotterdam. Silicon Canals is not responsible for the figures.
