E-Commerce Boomerang

Welcome Shareholders,

In this daily edition of the Brags Newsletter, we'll cover how venture firms are diving into the reverse logistics market, a pension fund looks to diversify its investments with a $100 million fund, and a startup looks to use its new funding to be healthcare's helping hand.

So sit back, grab a snack, and enjoy!

Venture Today 👏

Venture Firms Target $212 Billion Reverse Logistics Market

• Venture Firms are looking to pour money into reverse logistics startups as the number of e-commerce returns surged in 2022.

Last year, Americans returned roughly $212 billion worth of online merchandise—including clothing, electronics, and sporting goods—resulting in significant liquidations and landfill waste. Online returns have doubled from 2020 and have increased over fivefold since 2019. Certain categories, such as direct-to-consumer apparel brands, experienced particularly high return rates of up to 40%, which is more than double the overall rate of 16.5%.

Seeing the massive opportunity, venture firms have pumped over $200 million into reverse logistics startups, which is a 250% increase compared to 2021. Startups like Loop Returns and Two Boxes have largely benefited from the trend, raising money from investors.

Who's Raising?

Eskom's Pension Fund Commits $100 Million for Venture Capital

• Eskom's Pension and Provident Fund wants to invest in the venture capital industry to reduce its reliance on traditional investments.

South Africa's state-owned power utility firm, Eskom Holdings, manages assets worth around $10 billion, with about two-thirds invested in South African stocks, inflation-linked debt, property, and nominal bonds.

The firm said that private equity accounted for between 5% to 6% of net asset value, and it was looking to initially commit $100 million for offshore development markets, including North America and Europe. South Africa's pension legislation amendments now enable funds to invest up to 45% of assets abroad, with the Eskom fund allocating around 30% to offshore investments.

Startup of the Day

Patient Intake Startup Florence Raises $20 Million in Seed Funding

• Patient intake and tracking startup Florence secured $20 million in seed funding from a round led by Thrive Capital, GV, and Salesforce Ventures, with additional participation from Vast Ventures, BoxGroup, and Atento Capital.

Based in New York City, Florence offers digital intake and tracking solutions to health systems, enabling patients to update clinical information, fill prescriptions, self-discharge, and schedule follow-up visits.

The company provides a tiered subscription service based on patient volume and has currently partnered with 40 health systems, including academic medical centers, rural and for-profit hospitals, as well as not-for-profit systems like Maryland's Luminis Health. The funding comes at a time when hospitals are experiencing intense pressure due to staff shortages and increasing demand, leading to longer emergency room wait times and a higher number of patients leaving before seeing a provider.

Fresh Finds

VC Sheet - Where Founders Find VCs

• Filters funds by stage, sector, and geography to help pinpoint the ideal VCs for a startup.

• Dives deep into investor profiles with bios, YouTube videos, and notable investments, helping startups customize outreach and ensuring that founders walk into every pitch fully prepared.

• Shares the best way to get in touch with each fund, including email addresses and whether the investor has open DMs.

Memes and Other Things

Mmm, Maybe I shouldn't have taken a Loan Collateralized by my Carry to Move to the Center of Technology, aka Miami 🤔

The Headlines

Utah VC Kickstart Raises $230 Million Fund, Expands Into Colorado

Elaia announces €200m final close of fourth generalist fund

US investors slash Byju's and Swiggy valuation

A Difficult Pivot Looms for Venture Capital

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