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Machine learning-driven delivery start-up, On the dot, lands £8m in funding
Published by Gbaf News
Posted on August 18, 2018
6 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Gbaf News
Posted on August 18, 2018
6 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
The investment will fund product development, senior hires and international expansion
On the dot, the machine learning-driven last mile delivery start-up, and part of CitySprint Group, has announced today it has received an additional investment of £8 million from its parent company, which is itself PE-funded.
This new round will help fund On the dot’s further growth: product development, senior hires and international expansion, and builds on the £17.7 million invested in On the dot since its establishment in 2015. Globally, more than $11 billion (£8.5 billion) has been invested in start-ups disrupting the last mile delivery market since 2007.
On the dot – which now combines On the dot and LastMileLink Technologies – helps national and local retailers provide their customers with the ultimate in delivery convenience and compete with retail giants such as Amazon. According to the state of ecommerce delivery report from Metapack, 50% of consumers have abandoned a basket on a retailer or brand/manufacturer ecommerce website because of unsatisfactory or unavailable delivery options. Six out of ten consumers said they would buy more frequently from ecommerce sites that offer a faster, easier, fault-free and utterly transparent delivery service.
On the dot’s roster counts more than 100 customers including ASOS, Currys PC World, Dixons and Wickes. In June, On the dot’s platform passed the half a million deliveries milestone, driving the company’s 2018 revenues of nearly £4 million to date.
The investment has enabled the appointment of Ben Nowlan as Chief Revenue Officer. Ben was previously the co-founder and CEO of Sherpa, one of the first start-ups in the world to drive innovation in last mile delivery. The company has also hired a new Technical Director, Taher Khaliq. Previously, Taher was the Director of Ecommerce Platform for PhotoBox, a market-leader in photo-based products. To support the On the dot journey, the Group has already attracted an impressive selection of members to its Advisory Board. These include Ron Harris, a veteran of the high-technology venture capital world who was instrumental in the successful launch of Citrix Systems, Inc; Duane Jackson, ex-Kashflow Software founder and now a serial advisor and mentor; and Greg Kidd, an advisor/Investor for numerous start-ups who previously took a global last mile delivery company, Dispatch Management Services Corp, public on the NASDAQ.
“The delivery market is a tough one. UberRush left the sector in March and despite significant funding being provided for numerous start-ups in this space, they have struggled to achieve scale. Achieving the combination of scale and market traction in the dynamic market of on-demand delivery, whilst delivering a great customer experience, has proven difficult for many, large and small. Born out of CitySprint Group, our heritage in the delivery space means we’re uniquely placed to win. While our rivals are using data gained from pilots and early stage commercial activities, On the dot enters with decades of expertise in managing final mile collections and deliveries, more than 10 years’ worth of delivery data, and national and local scale through a fleet of more than 5,000 couriers. The additional £8 million in funding means we can more aggressively hone our already unrivalled offering and focus on international expansion. The UK is just the beginning” said Santosh Sahu, CEO, On the dot.
The investment will fund product development, senior hires and international expansion
On the dot, the machine learning-driven last mile delivery start-up, and part of CitySprint Group, has announced today it has received an additional investment of £8 million from its parent company, which is itself PE-funded.
This new round will help fund On the dot’s further growth: product development, senior hires and international expansion, and builds on the £17.7 million invested in On the dot since its establishment in 2015. Globally, more than $11 billion (£8.5 billion) has been invested in start-ups disrupting the last mile delivery market since 2007.
On the dot – which now combines On the dot and LastMileLink Technologies – helps national and local retailers provide their customers with the ultimate in delivery convenience and compete with retail giants such as Amazon. According to the state of ecommerce delivery report from Metapack, 50% of consumers have abandoned a basket on a retailer or brand/manufacturer ecommerce website because of unsatisfactory or unavailable delivery options. Six out of ten consumers said they would buy more frequently from ecommerce sites that offer a faster, easier, fault-free and utterly transparent delivery service.
On the dot’s roster counts more than 100 customers including ASOS, Currys PC World, Dixons and Wickes. In June, On the dot’s platform passed the half a million deliveries milestone, driving the company’s 2018 revenues of nearly £4 million to date.
The investment has enabled the appointment of Ben Nowlan as Chief Revenue Officer. Ben was previously the co-founder and CEO of Sherpa, one of the first start-ups in the world to drive innovation in last mile delivery. The company has also hired a new Technical Director, Taher Khaliq. Previously, Taher was the Director of Ecommerce Platform for PhotoBox, a market-leader in photo-based products. To support the On the dot journey, the Group has already attracted an impressive selection of members to its Advisory Board. These include Ron Harris, a veteran of the high-technology venture capital world who was instrumental in the successful launch of Citrix Systems, Inc; Duane Jackson, ex-Kashflow Software founder and now a serial advisor and mentor; and Greg Kidd, an advisor/Investor for numerous start-ups who previously took a global last mile delivery company, Dispatch Management Services Corp, public on the NASDAQ.
“The delivery market is a tough one. UberRush left the sector in March and despite significant funding being provided for numerous start-ups in this space, they have struggled to achieve scale. Achieving the combination of scale and market traction in the dynamic market of on-demand delivery, whilst delivering a great customer experience, has proven difficult for many, large and small. Born out of CitySprint Group, our heritage in the delivery space means we’re uniquely placed to win. While our rivals are using data gained from pilots and early stage commercial activities, On the dot enters with decades of expertise in managing final mile collections and deliveries, more than 10 years’ worth of delivery data, and national and local scale through a fleet of more than 5,000 couriers. The additional £8 million in funding means we can more aggressively hone our already unrivalled offering and focus on international expansion. The UK is just the beginning” said Santosh Sahu, CEO, On the dot.
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