:quality(75)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/bloomberglinea/HE3XWW2NGFEPHCGHAQCLFOVS3Q.png "The Bogota, Colombia-based startup is now valued at about $800 million")
Bloomberg — Tul, an e-commerce platform specializing in construction materials, raised $181 million in an equity funding round led by 8VC.
Avenir Growth Capital, Coatue, Tiger Global and SoftBank Latin America Fund also participated in the round, Enrique Villamarin, Tul’s chief executive officer and co-founder, said in an interview. The Bogota, Colombia-based startup is now valued at about $800 million, a person with knowledge of the matter said.
The capital will fund expansion in new markets such as Brazil, Villamarin said, adding that Tul expects to reach a revenue run-rate of $450 million by the end of 2022.
“Construction in emerging markets hasn’t evolved in the past 100 years and we are tackling a problem faced by those at the bottom-of-the-pyramid in Latin America,” said Villamarin, referencing the poorest socioeconomic group in the region.
Through its platform, Tul makes inventory available to small, independent hardware stores in low-income neighborhoods comprising self-built homes, and aims to make the overall process more affordable through supply chain efficiencies and scale, he said.
The startup’s app enables store owners to buy materials, offer financing, rent out tools, generate invoices and track orders. Tul says its total addressable market is $120 billion, comprised of roughly 600,000 hardware stores which account for half of the region’s sales.
“Tul has a significant runway for continued growth as its managed e-commerce marketplace further digitizes the construction industry through fintech and other value-added services,” said Jamie Reynolds, a partner at Avenir, who will be a board observer. 8VC partner Jake Medwell is joining Tul’s board.
Launched in 2020, the startup currently operates in Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico. Its other investors include Monashees, Lightrock and Foundamental.
