LILLE, France--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Vekia, a key player in machine learning in the Supply Chain market and an expert in forecasting demand and supply management, raises € 12 million to accelerate its international expansion in the United Kingdom, the United States and China, as well as to boost its technological progress.
This fundraising follows an initial investment of € 2.4 million in 2015. "Vekia is entering a crucial phase of its development in France, Europe and internationally. We are recognized as a leader in AI and an expert in forecasting demand and supply management. Today, this success and this acknowledgement allows us to complete a record fundraiser that shows the dynamism of the French technology industry. This new round will help us to realize our founding aim of offering next-generation Supply Chain solutions. This new capital will also give us the means to expand Vekia to Britain, the United States and Asia, while continuing to innovate to be as disruptive as possible," Vekia President & Founder, Manuel Davy, and CEO, Dominique Rérat.
Applying Machine Learning to Supply Chain
Vekia is
positioning itself in changing Retail market and equips distributors to
face the new challenges of the sector and to satisfy ever more demanding
consumers. Due to its strong industry knowledge, high technical skills
and Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions, Vekia optimizes in-store and
warehouse deliveries with an extremely accurate forecasting of demands
and sales. This makes it so distributors can effectively respond to
consumer purchases without cluttering their stores and warehouses with
unnecessary stock.
With this solution, retailers increase turnover and margins, while also saving working capital. By considering transaction history, planned promotions and seasonality through an agile and robust platform, Vekia saves working time while ensuring up to 97% accuracy in its forecasts.
Vekia solutions are adapted to a number of industries, contributing to better margins, while encouraging relocation and reducing pollution and greenhouse gases by lessened transport and production.
Large names on Vekia’s client list include Galeries Lafayette, Mr. Bricolage, Goal, Leroy Merlin and the Etam Group.
In terms of Vekia’s technological strides, the company boasts 120 man-years in engine construction, due to the work of six dedicated AI scientists.
Global Acceleration and Enhanced Performance
Already
positioned in Italy and Poland, Vekia opened a London office in April
2016. The fundraising will allow the startup to accelerate its
investments in the UK market. Vekia also intends to continue
international expansion by launching US activities by the beginning of
2018 prior to Asia.
Vekia currently employs 60 people and continues to build the team with plans to double the staff size in the next year. During the growth period, Vekia continues to enhance its AI solutions, specifically in Machine Learning, and now offers all its solutions in SaaS mode, to enable new technological advances.
For Anne-Valérie Bach, Partner at Serena Capital: "Vekia, rising star of the French Tech, has very good performance, exponential growth and financial strength. This success is first and foremost due to their great expertise in AI, mastery of complex Supply Chain processes and perfect knowledge of distribution. This startup has the potential to become an iconic success story and we are confident that it will become the world leader in its market in the coming years. We are pleased to provide our experience and support. "
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About Vekia
Awarded and recognized by international firms
including Gartner, Vekia creates and implements the most advanced supply
chain management solutions on the market with AI algorithms. Specialized
in Retail, Vekia's provisional supply management solutions help
distributors and manufacturers to achieve excellence in managing their
inventories, with rapid and strong impacts on turnover and margin. Vekia
improves every act of inventory management, whether small or large. The
most innovative retailers already drive their stocks with Vekia:
Galeries Lafayette, Mr. Bricolage, BUT, Leroy Merlin and Etam Group.
For
more information: www.vekia.fr
About Serena Capital
www.serenacapital.com
About EuraTechnologies
www.euratechnologies.com/
About Bpifrance
www.bpifrance.fr Twitter:
@bpifrance / @bpifrancepresse
