Tech-enabled fulfillment company Darwynn closes $20 million pre-seed round

warehouse
Darwynn says its facilities take up less space and costs less to operate.

Scarborough-headquartered Darwynn has secured $20 million in pre-seed funding to further develop its automated fulfillment network.

Darwynn did not disclose the investors that participated in this round. BetaKit has reached out for more details.

“The opportunity for innovation within the Canadian fulfillment marketplace through the use of data and automation is immense.”
-Reza Bafandeh, CEO of Darwynn

Incorporated last year, Darwynn claims that its tech-enabled fulfillment system takes up less physical space than a complex and costs less to operate. Its software platform is able to control how inventory is stored and retrieved within the storage system, and how outbound orders are prioritized, processed, and sequenced.

Darwynn said its storage solution uses robotic shuttles to travel independently from each storage level, riding on narrow rails. The startup said these robots are able to retrieve stored items at high speeds, ranging from 200 to 700 lines per hour.

“The opportunity for innovation within the Canadian fulfillment marketplace through the use of data and automation is immense,” said Reza Bafandeh, CEO of Darwynn. “Our vision is to be the world’s most seller-centric company, providing a platform that gives complete control and visibility to brands and retailers.”

In addition to its main office in Toronto, Darwynn’s facilities are also located in Vancouver, Calgary, and Montréal. Its partner fulfillment centers are in Edmonton, Ottawa, and Québec City.

According to Darwynn, this fresh injection of $20 million will help the company to expand on the development of its fulfillment network.

Wynn Xie, president of Darwynn, said the pre-seed round represents the company’s initial round of financing, and that it is an important stepping stone to allow Darwynn to continue building its offering.

RELATED: Shopify completes acquisition of Deliverr, plans launch of two-day and next-day delivery service

Darwynn has entered a space that is full of big players, including Ottawa’s e-commerce giant Shopify.

Shopify recently closed its acquisition of San Francisco-based Deliverr to expand its in-house fulfillment network. Shopify said that it will be working with Deliverr to launch Shop Promise, a new service that will offer consumers two-day and next-day delivery options.

Shopify first began moving into logistics with fulfillment centres in 2019. With the integration of Deliverr, Shopify said it will be able to offer its merchants a single platform for their logistics needs such as initial receipt of inventory, smart distribution, deliveries, and returns.

Featured image from CHUTTERSNAP via Unsplash.

Charlize Alcaraz

Charlize Alcaraz

Charlize Alcaraz is a staff writer for BetaKit.

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