GoFor Industries has built a business making sure that construction materials get where they need to go as soon as their customers need them there.
It’s a last-mile delivery for construction materials can be hugely important for construction businesses since downtimes can cost money and time for projects that need to get done on time and on (or under) budget.
That’s why a slew of investors led by Builders VC and including CEMEX Ventures, Mucker Capital, Plug and Play Ventures, Panache Ventures, I2BF Global Ventures and the Capital Angel Network invested $9.5 million in the company’s business.
Vendors to contractors and construction crews are rethinking how they get goods to customers, the company said, and as a result the company’s last mile logistics services are allowing companies to refashion their operations to shift to a delivery model for procurement.
“Delivery was typically handled by expensive and inefficient fixed asset fleets — limiting their ability to scale to meet demand and service levels,” said Brad Rollo, GoFor’s chief executive, in a statement.
With the new capital, the company said it will launch GoFor Dispatch, which is a product to help fleet operators automate and modernize their fleets as well as expanding the company’s geographic footprint across North America.
The Ottawa, Ontario-based company already counts the bulk of Canada’s Home Depot stores as customers and it would like to replicate that success in the US.
“Our platform powers all of Home Depot Canada’s last mile deliveries, over 150 locations across Canada,” said Rollo, in an emailed statement.
For Builders VC, a fund that focuses on investments in industries that have resisted adopting new technologies, the construction industry represents an ideal sector.
“Last-mile delivery has become table-stakes in the hyper-competitive construction materials market,” said Mark Blackwell, a partner with Builders VC.
In an eighteen months stretch, the company managed to expand from five cities to over sixty across Canada and the US.
Builders isn’t the only firm to see the value in the idea of last mile delivery for construction. CEMEX Ventures, the investment arm of the industrial manufacturing and cement giant CEMEX and the Los Angeles-based early stage investment firm Mucker Capital also poured money into the new venture.
“The efficient delivery of materials to the site is one of the biggest challenges for the construction industry. We are excited to see how GoFor helps merchants and builders with a reliable, transparent, and flexible delivery, while offering an extraordinary customer experience,” said Gonzalo Galindo from CEMEX Ventures.