Comprehensive Study Guide: Wakeo Product Overview, Technology, Financials, and SDR Mission

Overview and Product Foundation

• Founding Details: Founded in $2016$ by Julien Cote and Loïc Marzin.
• Global Scale: Operates across $180+$ countries.
• Product Definition: Wakeo is a B2B Software as a Service (SaaS) for real-time and predictive transportation visibility.
• User Access: Customers access the software online to monitor international cargo across sea, air, road, and rail.
• Core Function: Wakeo does not move cargo itself. It provides one digital control tower where companies can see and manage information about their international shipments.

Customer Pain Points: The Human Nightmare

• Primary Customer Pain: Shipment data is fragmented across carriers, freight forwarders, emails, spreadsheets, and internal systems.
• Operational Risk: Companies may discover delays too late.
• Consequences of Delayed Information:
  • Production disruption
  • Stockouts
  • Emergency transport
  • Missed customer commitments
  • Wasted employee time
  • Port penalties

Main Clients and Competitors

• Main Clients:
  • Michelin
  • Uniqlo
  • Air Liquide
  • Corteva
• Main Competitors:
  • Shippeo
  • project44
  • FourKites

Port Penalties: Financial Enemies

• Demurrage: Penalty fee when cargo containers stay inside the port gates / terminal too long.
• Detention: Penalty fee when containers stay outside the port yard too long before being returned.

Technological Mechanism: How Wakeo Works

• Core Value Proposition: Wakeo fixes the blindness, not the physical delay.
• Core Formula: Software platform $\rightarrow$ APIs bring in tracking data $\rightarrow$ Wakeo analyses it $\rightarrow$ Predictive ETA $\rightarrow$ customer receives early warning $\rightarrow$ customer acts earlier.
• Application Programming Interface (API): An automatic, invisible software extension cord. It connects Wakeo's map directly to boat and port computers so live data flows into the screen automatically without human emails.
• Predictive ETAs:
  • Definition: A highly accurate, independent, smart guess of exactly when a shipment will land.
  • Data Inputs: Wakeo uses weather and satellite data to calculate this true arrival time.
  • Alert System: Wakeo sends live updates and alerts directly to users, allowing logistics teams to react earlier.
  • Anticipation Lead Time: Some delays can be anticipated up to $4$ weeks in advance.

Financial and Operational Business Value

• Demurrage and Detention Costs: Up to $50\%$ reduction.
• Last-Minute Air Shipments: $20\%$ reduction.
• In-Transit Inventory: $10\%$ reduction.
• Productivity Gain: $30\%$ productivity gain.

Financial Scoreboard and Investment History

• The Series A Round:
  • Date: October $2021$
  • Amount Raised: $\text{€}9.5\text{ Million}$
  • Lead Investors: 360 Capital and Promus Ventures
• The Series B Round:
  • Date: December $2023$
  • Amount Raised: Massive $\text{€}18\text{ Million}$ Series B investment round
  • Lead Investor: Statkraft Ventures
  • Series B Definition: A major investment round used to help an already successful company scale globally, expand into international territories, and grow its teams.
• Total Lifetime Scoreboard:
  • Total Growth Capital: Added together over multiple years, Wakeo has raised over $\text{€}30\text{ Million}$ in total growth capital.
• Main Investors List:
  • Statkraft Ventures
  • Promus Ventures
  • 360 Capital
  • 50 Partners
  • Techstars

Sales Development Representative (SDR) Role and Pipeline Mission

• Sales Development Representative (SDR) Role Responsibilities:
  • Identify target accounts
  • Find the right decision makers
  • Prospect through phone, email, LinkedIn, and events
  • Uncover operational pain
  • Qualify the opportunity
  • Communicate Wakeo's business value
  • Create qualified pipeline and the next commercial conversation