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WeDeliver, the for-hire delivery service that won big at Techweek Chicago’s launch competition last year, closed $800,000 in seed round funding from local investors. The River North company intends to add businesses to its model and grow its team on the design and engineering end.
The company works on the notion that same day, on-demand delivery makes the world go round (of course it does!), with a delivery specialist serving as a middleman, bridging community. Some of WeDeliver’s partnering merchants include Glazed and Infused, Dilly Lilly and The Cookie Bar. WeDeliver operates throughout Chicagoland.
Community is an integral part of the business, Jimmy Odom, founder and CEO explained. There’s no better way to foster a sense of community than when a local merchant can sell its product to a local consumer through a local delivery company that’s backed by local investors. Like Uber or Lyft, customers can use WeDeliver’s app to track the progress of the delivery.
The reception from all parties has been very positive. The 100 merchants and 156 delivery specialists truly care about the experience they’re providing, said Odom.
The new round of funds will allow the company to invest in its team and add more businesses—which in turn will create more local jobs—all the while still remaining frugal, according to Odom.
Odom said the team is comfortable in doing this, as “we are getting to a place where we know what our culture is and where we’re going.”
But Odom said he isn’t exactly in a hurry to add businesses to its model. Though he wouldn’t say doing business with WeDeliver is “selective,” the team ensures the “experience is great for everyone,” by carefully choosing merchants to partner with based on factors such as location and customer wants and needs.
The traction that WeDeliver has gained, along with this funding boost, will help the company in the face of competition—Crain’s Chicago Business reported New York-based Zipments Corp. raised $2.3 million in September and has signaled intent to come to Chicago.
This isn't about our competitors, it's about allowing Chicago to support its own, Odom said.
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