There is a lot of speculation right now surrounding seemingly disgruntled investors in SoftBank’s Vision Fund, but the drum is still beating and the checks are still being written. The latest deal for the $ 100 billion mega-fund is Clutter, an on-demand storage company that secured $ 200 million in new funding for growth.
Eagle-eyed viewers will recall that TechCrunch broke the news of an impending SoftBank-led round of that size in January, and it is now official.
The startup is one of several companies offering storage options for consumers who don’t want to part with items but also don’t have the ability to keep them where they live. The service is based on an application that is used to invoke Clutter staff to pack, carry, store and (later) return possessions, but it can also be used for normal house moves, too. Competitors in the space include MakeSpace, Omni, Trove, Livible, and Closetbox.
Joining SoftBank in the deal are existing Clutter investors Sequoia, Atomico, GV, Fifth Wall and Four Rivers who led the latest round of the company, a rise of $ 64 million almost two years ago. This new capital means that Clutter has raised $ 297 million from investors to date.
There is no confirmation of a valuation for the startup, but our well-placed sources previously told us that this round would value Clutter between $ 400 million and $ 500 million. However, one thing that is confirmed is that SoftBank’s Justin Wilson will be joining the board.
The money will go towards expansion in the US, as Clutter explained in an announcement, but there are signs that it also harbors ambitions abroad:
This financing will accelerate the company’s expansion into new markets in 2019, including Philadelphia, Portland and Sacramento. It is also doubling down on its existing markets in the larger areas of New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, San Diego, Orange County, and northern New Jersey, as it moves toward the goal of operating in the 50 largest cities in the U.S. expanding internationally
“We believe that storage is a vast, traditional market with great potential for disruption, and Clutter’s technology and superior customer proposition will help facilitate future growth in sprawling urban communities where space is at a premium,” he said Wilson in a statement from SoftBank.