FloorFound lands $10.5 million backing for its large-item returns network
Startup will now expand its “recommerce” platform to appliances, mattresses, and exercise equipment.
The Texas-based e-commerce returns startup FloorFound is expanding to meet “skyrocketing” demand to handle returns of bulky and oversized items, thanks to $10.5 million in fresh funding, the firm said today.
Since emerging from its “stealth phase” in 2020, FloodFound has carved out a niche in providing “recommerce” for oversized items. The company will now use its new cash to expand its market presence in the U.S. and move into additional retail verticals such as appliances, mattresses, and exercise equipment.
The ”series A” financing round was led by Next Coast Ventures and LiveOak Venture Partners, with participation from previous investors FlyBridge Capital Partners, Schematic Ventures, and new investor Data Point Capital.
According to FloorFound, recommerce programs have historically been unavailable for oversized products until now because reverse logistics processes couldn’t handle the return and resale of large items. But the firm says its technology and team can now manage the entire process, from pickup of the returned item to inspection, warehousing, selling, and delivering it to its new owner.
FloorFound’s founder and CEO, Chris Richter, says that approach helps retailers transform returned and open-box merchandise into a new, repeatable, and sustainable source of inventory and revenue.
“FloorFound sits at the perfect intersection of the two most transformative trends in retail: sustainability and supply chain resilience,” Tom Ball, founder & managing partner at Next Coast Ventures, said in a release. “Chris and his team have spent the past 25 years in eCommerce and retail operations, specifically supply chain, and they have the unique knowledge necessary to create the right business model and value to take oversized recommerce mainstream.”
The market for handling bulky e-commerce goods has exploded during the pandemic, highlighted by deals like A.P. Moller – Maersk buying Pilot Freight Services, J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. buying Zenith Freight Lines LLC, Werner Enterprises Inc. buying NEHDS Logistics LLC, and AIT Worldwide Logistics buying Select Express & Logistics.