A Lancashire international fulfilment services provider beat its revenue forecast in the year before it secured a £7.5m investment from BGF.
Chorley-headquartered Fulfilmentcrowd has reported a 71% growth in revenue to £13m for year to March 31, 2021.
When it received the cash injection from BGF at the start of March this year, the business said it was expecting to report a revenue of £12m following he addition of distribution hubs in Europe and North America in 2020, as well as specialist centres such as the new chilled logistics operation in Blackpool which is aimed at UK-based ecommerce start-ups and SMEs in the food, drink, health and beauty sectors.
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During the same period, the company grew its customer base from 300 to 500 SME e-commerce retail businesses and expanded its operations in the EU and US.
The company’s US-based distribution centres in Los Angeles and Virginia are now processing 1,200 orders every week for a fast-growing base of British-based exporters.
The company also strengthened its presence in the EU, opening its third centre in Europe, which supported 264% growth in revenues generated by exports to the continent.
Over the next 12 months, the business added it will create 12 new technical and customer service roles to support its customer platform.
Managing director Lee Thompson said: "Growth is being driven by our unique ability to meet the demands of the fast-growing number of SME eCommerce retailers.
"Online shopping is growing at a phenomenal pace and smaller retail businesses want to increasingly focus energy on selling products, rather than spending time packing and sending them to customers.
"SME retailers are keen to outsource this part of their business but often find it cost-prohibitive and complex.
"They are also sometimes cautious they might end-up with a one-size-fits-all fulfilment solution, which doesn’t necessarily suit their size of operation.
"Our straightforward customer-focused offer of no minimum volumes and no lengthy agreements, backed-up by ‘plug and play’ tech, is really resonating with small and medium-sized e-commerce retailers."
He added: "The sector is undoubtedly facing a number of challenges, ranging from record shipping prices to driver shortages. Investing in tech and software is a key part of the solution for addressing these difficulties, as it can provide streams of data that help improve stock inventory forecasting and generate efficiencies.
"This will help protect the success of our customers during times of uncertainty and, in turn, help support our continued growth."