Tul, an e-commerce platform that strengthens developing communities by providing locally-run hardware stores with consistent access to construction materials, inventory management capabilities, invoicing services and opportunities to diversify revenue streams, announced it has secured a $181 million Series B. The round was led by 8VC and extended by Avenir, bringing Tul’s total funding to date to nearly $210 million.
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“I have known the founders since ideation and have watched them scale rapidly. They are by far some of the strongest operators in our portfolio.”
The company plans to use the funding to fuel its expansion into Brazil and other markets across Latin America, where more than 600,000 locally-owned community hardware stores account for 50% of the region’s hardware sales, representing a total addressable market of $120 billion. These hardware stores are often the backbone of their respective communities where most homes are “do-it-yourself” or self-built. Due to the stores’ small scale they often struggle with supply chain issues and inventory management.
“We are very excited about the opportunity for Tul to support the development of local communities in Latin America by partnering with their hardware stores,” said Enrique Villamarin, CEO and Co-founder of Tul. “We built this platform to enable the smallest business in the most remote regions—who are serving as pillars in their community—to be able to order products, manage their inventory, and open up other streams of revenue just as if they were a Home Depot or Lowe’s in a major American city. The potential to improve lives through technology is astounding and the market opportunity is massive.”
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“We are excited to double down into Tul as they continue to empower the underserved hardware store ecosystem. Tul serves self-built home neighborhoods in developing nations which is critical to the growth and advancement of these regions,” added Jake Medwell, a Founding Partner at 8VC. “I have known the founders since ideation and have watched them scale rapidly. They are by far some of the strongest operators in our portfolio.”
“Latin America’s construction material supply chain has historically underserved the neighborhood hardware store; Tul’s tech platform benefits all participants, especially business owners, by utilizing never-before-seen data in this analog industry. Tul has a significant runway for continued growth as its managed e-commerce marketplace further digitizes the construction industry through fintech and other value-added services,” said Jamie Reynolds, a Partner and Co-founder at Avenir.
The company was launched in Colombia in March 2020. It currently operates in five cities in Colombia, two cities in Ecuador, as well as in Mexico City and Guadalajara, Mexico. Tul has strong, established relationships with some of the region’s largest construction suppliers, including Gerdau, ArcelorMittal, Ternium, Sika, Wavin, Henkel, Phillips Assa Abloy, Bosch, DeWalt, Milwaukee, Cemex and others.
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