The labour-intensive logistics sector has a strong demand for robotic automation, and the market is still largely underserved. With the increased demand, several companies in this sector are receiving funding lately. Recently, we saw Beijing-based unicorn Geek+ raise $100 million and an autonomous mobile robots company Locus Robotics secure $50 million.
One such startup is Istanbul-based OPLOG, which positions itself at the centre of a major e-commerce revolution. It lets brands to move away from online marketplaces like Amazon without having to worry about establishing their own order fulfillment solution.
Raises €11M investment
The Turkish tech-enabled fulfillment company, OPLOG just announced a pre-series A funding round of €11 million. The round was led by Esas Private Equity, a leading private equity firm in Turkey, which has made numerous high-profile technology investments, including Turkish startup on-demand grocery delivery service Getir, AI marketing platform Insider, producer of lab-grown diamonds Appsilon, and mobile game developer Libra.
Bootstrapped for nine years, OPLOG will use the financing to fuel its expansion plans, including plans to open its first fulfillment centre in the UK by the end of the year, and drive product research and development, including in its robotics division.
Commenting on the round, OPLOG founder and chief executive Halit Develioglu said: “OPLOG was founded nine years ago and bootstrapped until today to drive e-commerce forward by enabling global businesses, and brands, to offer seamless post-purchase experiences to their customers. I am grateful to Esas for their support and investment and look forward to working closely together with them as OPLOG enters the next phase of our remarkable journey. Today’s announcement is testament to the hard work of the entire team – the future is very exciting.”
On their investment in OPLOG, Esas Private Equity, said: “Esas is only too happy to support OPLOG – a fine example of the Turkish tech scene going from strength to strength. Halit’s vision for the future of e-commerce and OPLOG’s dedication in bringing robotics to market make the company a compelling investment. We are excited for what the future holds.”
UK warehouse plan in 2023
In Q1 2023, OPLOG will become the only company in Europe other than Amazon to operate using in-house robotics technology within its fulfillment centres.
OPLOG’s new fulfillment warehouse in the UK which will employ over 100 people within its first 18 months of being operational. The warehouse will take advantage of the company’s state-of-the-art proprietary robotics technology. Through launching in the UK, its first warehouse outside Turkey, OPLOG will form a bridge between the countries.
Proprietary robotics tech in warehouses
Founded by Halit Develioglu in 2013 in Istanbul, OPLOG is a tech-enabled logistics company in Turkey. He has been included in Fortune 40 Under 40.
Its robotics technology is proprietary and each warehouse will utilise up to 50 robots. OPLOG stocks a merchant’s products in their smart warehouses and prepares orders on their behalf, from managing delivery and providing end-to-end fulfilment services enhanced with technology.
OPLOG works with multinationals such as SONY, Rossmann, and Tupperware. It has state-of-the-art warehouses in Gebze, Dilovasi and Ankara.
The startup enables e-commerce brands to operate in various markets without physical boundaries through its international fulfilment network and the ability to track all the inventory and operational processes in several OPLOG fulfillment centres.
