Shipping firm Convelio raises record £26m for art logistics
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Shipping firm Convelio announced this morning that it has raised a further $35m (£26m) in Series B funding, marking the world’s largest investment in arts logistics.
Powered by proprietary optimised pricing tech, Convelio enables auction houses, galleries and private art collectors all over the world to access the first instant quoting tool for competitively priced logistics services.
As soon as a customer places an order, Convelio will handle everything from shipping to insurance, customs and real-time tracking.
Convelio’s current focus is on specialised logistics in the art, antiques and luxury furniture markets that are cumulatively valued at more than $5bn (£3.8bn) in the US, UK and Europe alone.
This segment forms part of the world’s $1.6 trillion (£1.2 trillion) ‘high-value, time-critical and non-palletised’ goods market, which itself forms almost 20 per cent of the global logistics market worth $7.4 trillion (£5.6 trillion) annually.
During the past year, Convelio expanded significantly and the company was responsible for 14,000 shipments with a cumulative value of $265m (£200m) between over 80 countries worldwide.
Annual revenues more than doubled and the number of customers the startup served doubled to almost 3,000.
Today, Convelio’s customer base include global arts market giants such as Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips. Convelio tripled its team to support growing customer demand; most of its 200 employees are based in the art world capitals of Paris, New York and London.
The new investment will be used to develop its logistics tech, customer service offering and sustainability strategy. It will also be looking to expand its global headcount, especially in the US, the startup’s largest market.
“We are very pleased to welcome Forestay and Mundi Ventures as financial investors”, said Managing Director and Co-Founder, Edouard Gouin.
“Both investors align closely with our values on innovation and supportive, sustainable relationships. They believe in our vision to be leaders in the industry. This funding will fuel our efforts in technology, contribute to expanding our offering and help us expand our global footprint, particularly in the US, our fastest growing market”.
Managing Director and Co-Founder Clément Ouizille, added: “Backing from two more leading technology investors reflects the size of the opportunity in our reach, as the world art market continues to grow and adapts to the new digital norms”.
Cécile Bernard, Worldwide Head of Operations at Sotheby’s, commented: “The art market is moving online and touching more and more buyers, and to address our clients’ needs we are doubling down on our digital strategy.”