Forager, a Chicago startup that helps companies with international shipping, landed a new round of funding as it looks to grow its team.
Forager announced Thursday that it raised a $10 million Series A round led by U.S. Venture Partners, a Silicon Valley venture firm that counts Box, HotelTonight and Trunk Club among its previous investments. Other backers in the round include Chicago Ventures and Soma Capital. USVP General Partner Rick Lewis is joining Forager’s board as part of the investment.
Forager has now raised $14.5 million since it was founded in 2018. It last raised a $3.5 million round in September.
Forager has developed a cross-border freight solution that makes it easier for shippers to transport products to and from Mexico and Canada. Its product, SCOUT by Forager, allows companies to book, track, and manage any load between the U.S., Mexico and Canada.
Forager was co-founded by Matt Silver, a former employee of Coyote Logistics and the son of Jeff Silver, who founded Coyote in 2006. Coyote was acquired by UPS for $1.8 billion in 2015.
The startup, which currently has 40 employees, said it will use the funding to expand its engineering and product teams, as well as expedite product development. Forager was one of Chicago Inno's 20 startups to watch in 2020.
“We’re excited to ramp up development and grow the team,” Silver said in a statement. “We’ve accomplished so much operating as a very lean, very scrappy startup. I couldn’t be prouder of how far we’ve come, but now the gloves are off. Now we can really go big.”
