Daily News
From Home Furnishing Business
Cymax Gets $25M Cash Infusion
October 15,
2015 by in Business Strategy, Industry 
Home furnishings e-tailer Cymax has raised $25 million in its first round of funding.
The company will create an end-to-end e-commerce solution for furniture retailers and proprietary technology that streamlines shipping and logistics with the funding.
The financing was led by Frind Holdings, BDC Ventures and Salman Partners.
"Right now only 15 percent of purchases in the $235 billion home furnishing category happen online,” said Arash Fasihi, Cymax CEO. “Inventory management and shipping logistics are major pain points for retailers, and lack of selection, extended delivery times and damaged goods are hindering the market on the consumer side. Purchasing a couch or a table should be as simple as buying a book off Amazon. Our technology will empower retailers to bring more choices to market and ensure furniture arrives at consumers' homes quickly and intact.”
Since its founding in 2004, Cymax has connected shoppers with furniture options they couldn't previously find online by partnering with manufacturers and handling shipping and delivery. The company moves more than 1.4 million boxes a year.
The retailer uses predictive analytics to optimize inventory delivery and distribution—tools it now plans to make accessible to other retailers as it evolves from an online marketplace into a leader in e-commerce technology.
Cymax sales numbers initially attracted the interest of investors like Markus Frind, the 37-year-old Plenty of Fish founder who recently sold his online dating startup to Match.com for $575 million. Cymax's technology and first-to-market opportunity in a lagging e-commerce category is capturing the long-term interest of investors.
"Cymax is a leader in the multi-billion dollar furniture industry, but its multi-platform business model and pioneering approach of logistics and shipping technology for online furniture sales is where I see huge potential for growth," Frind said.
The funding comes at a time of expansion for Cymax, which has seen 71 percent growth over the past five years, without major external investments until now.