Learn how Flexport Came up with a Plan on Addressing Global Supply Chain Issues and Broken Shipping
Public Facts About FLEXPORT
- Flexport Inc. is an American multinational corporation that focuses on supply chain management and logistics, including freight forwarding and customs brokerage. It was founded in 2013 by Ryan Peterson.
- The company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, has thousands of employees and has annual revenues of more than $3.3 billion.
- Flexport’s software integrates and connects ERP data from various companies involved in a supply chain, which allows them to manage information about cargo and streamline freight processing. It has raised $304M as of 2017, including $110M in its latest Series C round.
How Flexport Plans to Address the Global Shipping Problems. Watch the Video to learn more
Based on this Freethink Story
At first, Ryan Petersen imagined that Flexport would serve as a sort of “Turbo Tax for importing” — a software that just does the necessary paperwork for companies. But like most founders, his vision grew over time. Today, Flexport sends over 200,000 shipping containers across the globe.
While Petersen and his team have seen enormous success that doesn’t mean his job as a founder and CEO gets any easier. So how do you go from envisioning a simple “Turbo tax for importing” to scaling a world class company that has a direct impact on the global economy and the ears of government officials?
It’s not easy — there’s bound to be struggles and pain along the way. But for Petersen, a deep understanding of the company’s vision — and just how big an impact you can have in the world — is the key to pushing through the growing pains that will inevitably arise. “If what you’re trying to achieve is important enough, then you’ll overcome all the pain.”
Freethink
How Flexport Fixed Shipping. Learn more below.
The Story of How Flexport was Scaled from Zero to 8B$
Public Facts on Growth Story of Flexport
- Growth In May 2015, the company told Chinese media outlet 36kr.com that they were on pace to generate $60M in sales for 2015. It had more than 600 customers in 2016. It has increased revenue by 25% every month in the 30 months since Flexport was founded, according to Petersen.
- As of 2017, Flexport has raised $94 million in venture capital from such investors as Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund, First Round Capital and Google Venture.
- In July 2016, it had 420 employees in seven offices, including Atlanta, Amsterdam, Hong Kong and Shenzhen, and was worth $365 million. In August 2018 Flexport was named the 8th fastest growing company in USA with a three-year growth of 15,911%.
- In a 2017 interview to Forbes, Flexport’s CEO Ryan Petersen said the company started opening their own warehouses for consolidating cargo customer shipments located in Hong Kong and L.A. with plans “to have a global network where we can load and unload cargo”.
- In 2019, Flexport was named to the 2019 CNBC Disruptor 50, CNBC’s annual list of private companies that are transforming the economy, and Inc.’s Best Workplaces. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Flexport announced layoffs along with other Silicon Valley tech startups.
- In December 2021 Flexport launched the Flexport Certified Partner Network to bring together local expertise and global accessibility.
- In 2022, Flexport “raised $935 million in a Series E funding round that values the freight forwarding company at $8 billion”.It has raised $2.3 billion since its inception. In June 2022, Flexport announced that Amazon worldwide consumer chief Dave Clark would be joining Flexport as its new CEO.
