Otrafy has taken on the food and beverage market, but it’s ready to tackle other complex industries through partnerships.
That’s where Buffalo comes in.
“When I come to Buffalo, I love that it’s a huge manufacturing hub,” CEO Nhat Nguyen said. “It’s the right trajectory for us.”
He and Lucas Cunha, COO, founded Otrafy in 2018. The business uses software to help clients automate compliance and documentation management throughout supply chains between buyers and suppliers.
The startup, a winners of one of this year’s $1 million 43North prizes, is moving its headquarters from Chicago to Buffalo early next year. The company has grown its customer base from 195 at the end of last year to a little over 600.
The business so far has focused on quality assurance paperwork in the food and beverage industry, but the co-founders see possibilities across other verticals and sectors of manufacturing.
“Buffalo has a key active role in that,” said Cunha. “Where do we go next?”
They want to have conversations and form partnerships with Buffalo companies in highly complex, regulated industries like aviation.
In addition to the founders moving to the Queen City, the company expects to add three positions to its team of 22 full-time employees. Otrafy plans to hire locally for three positions including a head of partnership.
“We do think those key roles, (which will) take us to next level of company, will be from and stay in Buffalo,” said Cunha.
In addition to the $1 million 43North prize, Otrafy has also raised a $700,000 pre-seed funding round.
The startup began Techstars Farm to Fork Accelerator in Minnesota in late 2019, and through that program connected with accelerator alumnus Sam Eder, CEO of Big WheelBarrow, a $500,000 prize winner in last year’s 43North pitch contest.
Eder’s experience with the 43North competition led Otrafy to apply this year.
After Techstars, Otrafy launched its software-as-a-service product right as the pandemic started and it was able to ramp up sales in late 2021. Now that they have a value proposition that customers are willing to pay for, they’re ready to scale.
“Now we have the resources to start getting toward a fully sustainable product,” Cunha said. “People sign on, see the benefit and upgrade. Creating the right partnerships is going to be key next…That’s our objective.”
