Convey lands $10 million investment to expand beyond retail sector

Logistics technology firm Convey Inc. will expand its last-mile delivery management software beyond the retail sector thanks to a $10 million venture capital investment, the company said today.

The capital, which came from Silverton Partners, Techstars Venture Capital Fund, RPM Ventures, and NextGen, is Convey's fourth round of funding overall and brings the company's total investment to $25.75 million, the firm said.

Austin, Texas-based Convey makes cloud-based shipping software that it says allows brands to meet shipping deadlines and conditions by detecting and resolving any problems before they impact the customer experience.

Convey designed its software for the core market of retail customers, and burgeoning e-commerce orders are now driving a rising demand for improved visibility into last-mile delivery, Convey CEO Rob Taylor said in an interview. In response, the company will use its new funding to expand its product portfolio capabilities and add staffing in sales, engineering, and client success, he said.

In addition to driving research into improved capabilities, the funding will enable Convey to launch a sales and marketing effort to find applications for the software in additional vertical markets, such as the delivery of pharmaceutical products to drug stores, medical devices to hospitals, and construction materials to building sites, Taylor said.

Regardless of the sector, customer expectations for fast, inexpensive delivery are pushing the limits of carriers' and couriers' ability to deliver that service, he said. "The market has become very heated," Taylor said. "Carrier networks are becoming more complex, not less, and people are ordering more large items online, which means drivers have to come into their homes, and appointments have to be set."

Convey's software can help retailers meet those demands, whether they are same-day delivery, parcel, less than truckload (LTL), white glove, or threshold services, he said. "If a shipment is in distress, we can detect that very early in its journey, which is key because it gives the shipper and the carrier time to collaborate to do something about it before the customer is even aware," Taylor said.

Companies usually handle those issues by trading a barrage of spreadsheets, emails, and phone calls, but Convey's product acts as a collaboration platform where partners can communicate and resolve issues in a single application, he said.

The announcement follows Convey's last round of funding, when the company announced a 2017 investment of $8.25 million and launched a project to integrate its cloud-based shipping software with a last-mile delivery application from Ingram Micro Commerce & Fulfillment.