Craig Mercure 
Denver-based Fluid Truck, a peer-to-peer truck sharing platform company, was recently in the news for raising a $63M Series A led by Bison Capital. This announcement has created a buzz in the Denver startup scene.
This Series A gives Fluid Truck all the capital it needs to expand its platform and remain a leader in the peer-to-peer truck sharing industry.
We will explore why this Series A is a big deal for Denver’s startup scene.
Denver-based Fluid Truck, a peer-to-peer truck sharing platform company, raises $63M Series A led by Bison Capital
Fluid Truck is a Denver-based startup with a mission to make shipping and delivery easier. They do this by connecting cargo owners (people seeking to move bulky cargoes) with drivers that have trucks of various sizes. Fluid Truck allows customers to book shipments online, rather than needing to find and screen multiple carriers—a process that used to be incredibly time consuming.
Founded in 2018, Fluid Truck has grown rapidly over the past two years. Since its inception, the company has secured various investments from venture capitalists and angel investors, which it has used to expand its fleet and develop innovative customer features.
Most recently, Fluid Truck announced it had secured Series A financing from San Francisco-based venture fund First Round Capital. The investment is significant for Denver’s startup ecosystem as outside capital rarely flows into the area’s tech space; Series A investments are especially scarce. This round of funding will allow the company to continue growing and refining their service for cargo owners ranging from small business owners to large corporations seeking trucking services in the Denver area.
Overview of Bison Capital
Bison Capital is an early stage venture capital firm based out of Boulder, Colorado that invests in technology and consumer-focused businesses of all sizes. Founded in 2019 by serial entrepreneur, venture capitalist and philanthropist Josh Buckley, the firm manages over $500 million in assets under management with a focus on providing early-stage capital investments and strategic resources to exceptional founders who are “building smarter, faster” ways to change the world.
The firm has several different types of investments depending on their level of involvement. Typically they will begin with seed or angel stage investments then move into a Series A round when there is more proof that the business can grow quickly. As such, Bison Capital was one key investor in Fluid Truck’s Series A raise earlier this year.
Fluid Truck is a logistics start up headquartered in Denver. Its mission is to revolutionize freight transportation through their fleet of self-driving semi-trucks powered by cutting edge Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies and green energy sources. They are one of the few startups in Denver focused on autonomous vehicle technology and have received significant backing from venture capital investors including Bison Capital’s Series A round. This marks an important transition for both companies as their collaboration could help to transform Fluid Truck into a leading force within the autonomous vehicle space and provide Bison Capital with exposure to many exciting opportunities within the innovative tech sector.
Impact of the Series A
Denver-based Fluid Truck recently raised $63M in a Series A funding round led by Bison Capital. This news is incredibly exciting and can potentially have a major impact on the Denver startup scene. This funding round is a huge accomplishment for Fluid Truck and a win for the local tech community.
Let’s take a closer look at why this Series A funding round is such a big deal.
The significance of the $63M investment
Fluid Truck’s monumental $63M Series A raised in January 2021 is the second-largest funding round for a Colorado software company since 2013, and the most successful investment for an early-stage Denver-based startup this year. As such, it serves as a major milestone for the city’s fast-growing startup scene.
The massive infusion of capital signals that Denver is no longer just a major US tech hub – its entrepreneurial economy is now capable of sustaining large investments and encouraging innovation that rivals larger cities on coasts. In addition to attracting other venture capitalists, the investment will pave the way for more entrepreneurs to land their own Series A rounds more confidently. Startup founders can look at Fluid Truck’s success and see what it takes to get to their next stage of development.
The impact of Fluid Truck’s impressive Series A will be felt far beyond its cohort; other tech startups in the area will certainly feel encouraged by its success and motivated to capitalize upon its unprecedented success by achieving similar levels of growth themselves in 2021. This could mean more successful fundraising rounds and higher venture investments as early stage companies strive to grow their projects into giant enterprises. With seed capital becoming increasingly available, more startups are incentivized push ahead toward development and market validation – pushing forward the innovation happening in Denver ever closer towards mass market appeal.
While it may still take some time before we see this wave of investment fully materialize in terms of job growth or groundbreaking changes in technology across multiple industries, there’s no doubt that Fluid Truck’s colossal Series A round will spur waves of positive change throughout Denver’s startup scene – spurring further ingenuity from all corners of the entrepreneurial world within our city limits.
The potential impact on Denver’s startup scene
The recent Series A funding of Fluid Truck marks an important step forward in Denver’s startup scene. This is the first venture round in which a Denver-based company has raised over $15 million—the most ever raised by a Boulder or Denver based company in the seed or pre-seed stage.
Not only does this round of funding demonstrate that investors worldwide are recognizing the potential of early stage startups in Colorado, but it also serves as an affirmation that funding a diverse set of companies can be successful. The investment into Fluid Truck further validates Colorado’s unique tech ecosystem that combines talent with strong values of innovation and collaboration.
For founders considering launching their venture in Colorado, this news is encouraging, as it shows potential to raise significant money from local and international sources at any stage. As more resources become available to help entrepreneurs launch their companies, this milestone moment for Fluid Truck shows that now might be one of the best times to take advantage of them.
Moreover, this round of funding will further cement Colorado’s status as a major tech hub for more than just software and biomedicine startups — highlighting the vibrancy and diversity that makes our startup scene so unique. With many innovative companies getting off the ground yearly,this landmark investment into Fluid Truck will inspire more Founders around the Rockies to take their business ideas into the market.
Fluid Truck’s Growth
Denver-based Fluid Truck, a peer-to-peer truck sharing platform company, recently announced that they had raised a $63M Series A led by Bison Capital. This is a significant development not just for Fluid Truck, but for the wider Denver-based startup scene as well.
In this section, we’ll explore the implications of this round of funding for Fluid Truck and the Denver-based community.
The company’s rapid growth since its launch
Fluid Truck has come a long way since it was founded in 2014. The company quickly grew to a team of 15 employees and over 20,000 active users, who access Fluid Truck’s services through its mobile app.
Fluid Truck helps truck owners and operators save time by automating their bookings, payments, and customer communication. The startup was accepted into the 2017 Techstars Mobility class in Detroit, where it received mentorship from industry-leading executives and $120K in funding to fuel its expansion. Last summer, Fluid Truck raised $1 million in a Seed round led by Revolution Ventures — making it one of the largest seed rounds ever for a Denver-based tech startup.
Now that Fluid Truck has secured its Series A round—of an undisclosed amount—it is setting itself apart from other startups in Denver’s burgeoning technology scene. With the additional funding, the company will launch FluidConnect™ software to streamline flows between carrier vendors and reduce administrative paperwork for truck drivers. To make this happen at scale, FluidTruck will also use its new capital to continue growing its engineering and customer success teams and expand internationally later this year.
The goal of becoming the go-to truck sharing platform
Fluid Truck, a container truck sharing platform, recently announced that it had raised $5M in a Series A funding round led by Vertical Venture Partners and joined by Prelude Ventures, Techstars Ventures and Nelnet. This comes from the company’s previous $3.3M seed round, allowing Fluid Truck to accelerate its mission of becoming the go-to platform for truck sharing on-demand.
The company’s smart technology helps connect container truck owners with profitable cargo and provides storage services for their shipping containers. Additionally, working with drivers, Fluid Truck’s freight dispatch allows drivers to book trips based on their availability and optimize routes and fees for them. With this new funding round under its belt, the platform is well-positioned to offer even more value for customers through its network expansion and future product and services development; something that will be key to scaling up the business in various markets.
The Denver-based startup has operated since 2017 when they closed a $500K pre-seed funding round. The combination of local support and this latest investment have allowed Fluid Truck to stay true to their goal of providing an efficient solution for distribution logistics while also breaking into new markets; meaning faster delivery times leading to improved customer satisfaction overall. With attractive features such as digital payment methods and dynamic pricing capabilities on a cloud-based platform, they are sure to be one of bigger players in the truck sharing space while making it easier than ever for small businesses and individuals alike to use container trucks confidently.
Bison Capital’s Investment
Denver-based Fluid Truck, a peer-to-peer truck sharing platform company, recently announced its successful closing of a $63 million Series A led by Bison Capital.
Bison Capital’s investment in Fluid Truck is a significant milestone in the Denver startup scene, as this marks one of the largest Series A rounds in the Mile High City in recent years.
With this newfound capital, Fluid Truck is poised to revolutionize the truck rental industry in the United States.
The rationale behind the investment
Bison Capital has invested in Fluid Truck’s Series A and this is a huge endorsement of startups from the Denver area. There are a few key reasons why this investment was made that can be broken down into four areas.
First, Bison Capital saw clear potential in Fluid Truck. They recognized their innovative approach to solving delivery problems within the logistics ecosystem and wanted to support the company’s potential for success.
Second, Fluid Truck had a highly experienced management team that Bison Capital deemed capable of making sound decisions and scaling effectively. The team also demonstrated an ability to think strategically, another attractive quality for Bison.
Third, Bison Capital wanted to support Denver’s local startup scene by investing in an up-and-coming company. The organization understands that supporting startups creates jobs and finances economic growth across different industries. It also provides Denver with the opportunity to further strengthen its reputation as a hub for innovative business models and approaches—something investors across the nation are increasingly paying attention to.
Finally, investing in Fluid Truck fit well with Bison’s business goals as an investor: to create long-term value from successful ventures over multiple investment rounds.
By investing early in a promising startup such as this one, it enables them to gain a greater interest later on if things go as planned.
The potential benefits of the partnership
The potential benefits of Fluid Truck’s partnership with Bison Capital are considerable. The influx of capital will give the company the resources needed to expand and evolve quickly, allowing them to capitalize on well-timed opportunities. It will also supply them with resources to enhance their product offerings and remain competitive. This could include broadening their reach, introducing new technology solutions, or providing a wider range of services. Additionally, the partnership with an established venture firm can lend Fluid Truck credibility and help open doors in potential collaborations and alliances.
Bison Capital’s investment will provide a boost for Denver’s startup scene as well. By investing in Fluid Truck, Bison Capital joins the growing ranks of venture firms betting on Denver companies as key players in the tech industry. It’s yet another sign that venture capitalists are paying close attention to what’s happening outside Silicon Valley and believing these burgeoning startups have serious growth potential. This visibility should inspire more local startups to pursue Series A fundraising rounds and, hopefully, create greater investment opportunities for Colorado’s burgeoning startup ecosystem.
Conclusion
With its $63 million Series A funding round led by Bison Capital, Denver-based Fluid Truck not only raised capital to propel its platform forward, but also gave the Startup Scene in Denver a sense of optimism.
This funding round marks one of the biggest investments in the Denver scene, and it will likely have a ripple effect on the startup industry. Let’s take a look at the implications of this funding round.
Summary of the key points
Fluid Truck’s Series A round of $20 million is a major milestone for the Denver startup scene, challenging the long-standing belief that venture capital and tech talent are inaccessible in the Rocky Mountain region. Fluid’s success shows what can be accomplished when you have a strong team in place, market traction and forward-thinking investors.
Fluid’s team was able to draw investors from both coasts and regional venture capital groups. Collectively these investors provided Fluid with the necessary capital to strengthen their current product offerings and launch new ones. The company was also aided by local business accelerators who helped them establish themselves in Denver’s tech sector.
Investors were attracted to Fluid largely because of the potential for their unique professional software product, which caters to blue-collar businesses such as construction and moving companies. This kind of technology play can be highly lucrative if it is successful. It also added to its appeal that Fluid had already enabled major customers such as Lowe’s Home Improvement and Sysco Corporation with their service products.
Fluid Truck’s Series A demonstrates that talented teams backed by meaningful traction can raise significant funding outside traditional startup hubs like Silicon Valley or New York City. This deal will certainly inspire others to press on against adversity and seek out investment in regions where they may not have thought possible before today.
Final thoughts on the Series A
The closing of Fluid Truck’s Series A round is a big win for the Denver startup scene. The investment validates that high-quality products, innovative technology, and hard work don’t go unnoticed by investors. This will encourage local entrepreneurs to take advantage of early stage funding opportunities.
Furthermore, Fluid Truck’s successful Series A has brought a newfound spotlight to Denver startups, highlighting the many innovative initiatives coming out of the area and showing potential for new entrepreneurial endeavors to succeed in the Mile High City.
As more local startups raise funding and gain attention, it will bring awareness and resources (financial and other) to Denver’s vibrant startup ecosystem.
