Early stage investment firm Antler Australia recently supported 13 startups as part of its ongoing program to build great local tech companies.

Startup Daily shares the details of each venture in the “Antler Investor Memos” series.

You can also meet the founders every Monday and Wednesday on the Startup Daily show at ausbiz.com.au.

This series is designed to give you a fast, a keen understanding of the startups and people involved, with many looking for follow-on capital after Antler’s initial pre-seed investment.

Company: ShopAssist

Date of incorporation: 2022

Operating phase: Preseed

founders: Somya Bahadur and Ali Rossic

Current investors: antlers

Currently increasing: Yes

Company

While the growth in online shopping is booming, many local businesses have been left behind due to the complexities of managing an online presence, the cost of deliveries, and the resources required to package each order.

ShopAssist is a marketplace that brings local stores together to provide their existing customers with a single checkout and delivery service. By doing so, the market creates a community of local retailers that can provide their customers with an omnichannel experience and compete with larger retail chains.

The marketplace can help local retailers struggling to compete in the online environment by offering a virtual storefront, loyalty programs, delivery and click-and-collect options, in a cost-effective and operationally-effective manner.

While consumers can save time and money by shopping online at their favorite local retailers and meaningfully engaging with stores they love with personalized offers. In one order, consumers can order from multiple retailers and have the items delivered within a few hours.

Antler investment thesis

“Shopassist has shown promising early traction despite playing in a competitive market,” said Bede Moore, Managing Partner of Antler APAC.

“Successful offshore versions of the ShopAssist model certainly validate the approach and demonstrate that the opportunity to grow outside of Australia is significant. Our belief in ShopAssist to expand its customer base and quickly replicate its product is strong.”

Traction/milestones, so far

ShopAssist is approaching partnerships with 30 local retailers, including grocers, butchers, pet stores and other stores in Sydney. By the end of the quarter, ShopAssist plans to expand across Australia.

ShopAssist is fast approaching $20,000 in transaction volume.

By diligence

Explore ShopAssist’s pitch video and investor deck via The Antler Portfolio Disclosure Platform.

Latest financing

Pre-Seed from Antler

Use of funds

Antler’s initial investment will support ShopAssist in launching new features in its upcoming mobile app, which the team expects to significantly increase customer reach and operational efficiency.

The founders say:

“Now that delivery companies are flooding the market, our focus is different. We help local retailers seamlessly transform their consumers’ offline shopping experience into the digital world, as customers can connect with the retailers they love and not worry about paying a premium for online shopping.” says Somya Bahadur, co-founder and CEO of ShopAssist.

“Our market model means we don’t have to buy or hold stock, we don’t have warehouses, trucks or logistics needs. Our goods come from existing retailers who already have stores, and their own inventory and our shoppers are on-demand.

“Antler has been more than an investment partner. His expert guidance from the early stages helped us define our go-to-market strategy, which proved very successful. The guidance on setting up the business the right way was also very valuable to us, with the added benefit of a peer-founder network to share our lessons.

“Antler continues to help shape our strategy and define our focus on meeting the right investors to help us grow.”

What’s next?

Antler, an early stage global VC, recently showcased its latest investments in ambitious Australian founders and startups. ShopAssist was one of Antler Australia’s newest portfolio companies.

Learn how the ShopAssist marketplace connects consumers to local stores with a single register in multiple stores through the Antlers Portfolio Reveal Platform.

• StartupDaily is Antler’s official media partner in Australia.