Bob Kagle Joins uShip Board of Directors
AUSTIN, Texas, June 24 /PRNewswire/ — uShip, Inc. (http://www.uShip.com ), the world’s largest online marketplace for shipping and moving, today announced it has raised its first round of equity funding from Benchmark Capital. uShip also today announced that Bob Kagle, a founding partner of Benchmark Capital and an early investor in eBay, has joined its board of directors. The details of the funding were not disclosed.
“The entire uShip team is thrilled to have a firm with the experience and reputation of Benchmark Capital behind it. Together, I am confident that we can use this investment to build a company that our employees, investors, and online community members can be proud of,” said Matt Chasen, uShip CEO and co- founder. “Our goal is to make uShip the brand that people think of when they are shipping or moving larger goods.”
uShip is the world’s largest peer-to-peer marketplace for shipping and moving. uShip members list shipments in several categories, including General Goods (furniture, appliances, etc.), Household & Office Moves, Vehicles & Boats, Special Care Items (pianos, antiques, etc.), Commercial Freight, Pets & Livestock, and Plants & Agriculture. Members then receive bids from among thousands of feedback-rated shipping and moving service providers. Because carriers can efficiently fill extra cargo space, many offer discounts of up to 80% off their traditional prices.
“uShip is a classic example of an Internet marketplace that is revolutionizing an industry. By giving more information and choice to consumers and carriers, uShip brings down prices for consumers, increases business for carriers, and creates a more efficient marketplace,” said Bob Kagle, general partner at Benchmark Capital. “In addition, there are lots of items that people don’t ship, because it has traditionally been too expensive or difficult. By making it easy to locate a feedback-rated provider at a fair price, uShip opens up a whole new market for shipping and moving.”
About uShip
uShip is the world’s largest peer-to-peer marketplace for shipping and moving. Members of the uShip online community can list shipments in several categories, including General Goods (furniture, appliances, etc.), Household & Office Moves, Vehicles & Boats, Special Care Items (pianos, antiques, etc.), Commercial Freight, Pets & Livestock, and Plants & Agriculture. Members then receive bids from among thousands of feedback-rated shipping and moving service providers. Because carriers can efficiently fill extra cargo space, many offer discounts of up to 80% off their traditional prices. uShip empowers consumers by giving them access to a wider marketplace of service providers and the ability to leave feedback for carriers. uShip empowers smaller, independent carriers by providing the marketing scale, logistics technology, and reputation they need to compete with large corporate van lines. Founded in 2003, uShip is headquartered in Austin, TX.
About Benchmark Capital
Benchmark Capital was founded in 1995 to help talented entrepreneurs build great technology companies. Benchmark’s partners take a team-oriented, labor- intensive approach to venture investing to deliver a superior level of service to the firm’s portfolio companies. Benchmark’s portfolio includes franchise companies such as eBay, Juniper Networks and Red Hat. Managing more than $3 billion in committed venture capital, Benchmark focuses on investing in entrepreneurs with original ideas. For more information on Benchmark, visit its web site at http://www.benchmark.com.
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