Tyltgo, a white-label delivery company for retailers, announced it has closed on CA$2.3 million ($1.8 million) seed investment. The round was led by TI Platform Management and included Y Combinator as well as angel investor Charles Songhurst. The Canadian company has also announced Kahled Hussein, a partner at TI Platform Management, will join Tyltgo’s board as chairman.
“Tyltgo has the potential to be one of Canada’s next great success stories, riding on the e-commerce wave from Shopify,” Hussein said. “Tyltgo’s business model combines several innovations in same-day delivery that will boost Canada’s sharing economy.”
The company started as a way for Jaden Pereira, Tyltgo’s co-founder and CEO, to help fellow students at the University of Waterloo get groceries and other everyday items delivered directly to them. Along with his experience in shipping and receiving, he realized that many students had to plan their days around picking up orders at merchant locations, or had to pay premium for same-day delivery. Pereira started helping his friends at the university by organizing pickups for them but quickly saw a larger opportunity supporting the merchants.
“I realized that there was a big gap in the market for these merchants, and that we were experiencing a lot more growth on the merchant-facing side than the consumer-facing side,” said Pereira in an interview with Betakit.
Since that moment, Tyltgo has focused on bringing white-label offerings to small and medium-size businesses. According to the company’s website, once a customer receives an order, Tyltgo handles all aspects of delivery, including a branded live tracking page and delivery notifications, along with live support if needed. Its customers are able to offer same-day delivery with Tyltgo’s network at a fraction of the price.
Companies like Bloomex, Canada’s largest flower delivery service, and General Assembly, a pizza subscription startup, use Tyltgo for these services. The company has set a goal to serve 100 new retailers by the end of this year and to double its current team, which consists of nine employees.
“These are uncertain times for retailers, but Tyltgo helps these merchants connect with their customers in an innovative way that will continue to serve them after lockdown restrictions lift,” said Pereira in the release. “This capital will allow us to help more retailers across Ontario and boost local economies.”