Founder of the month: NeoCargo
09.05.2022
Philipp Hauff
Founder of the month
Our startup of the month is NeoCargo, which was founded at the end of 2021. NeoCargo's mission is to change the freight forwarding market and logistics in Germany and Europe. A simple networking of forwarders for more productivity and a digital handling.
What does your company stand for?
We are the independent, digital networking platform for medium-sized forwarders.
Where and how did you come up with the idea to found the company?
The initial idea and concept of NeoCargo AG came about during a preliminary project at KIT together with a large association of medium-sized freight forwarders. We started with about 20 freight forwarders on a greenfield site to understand the everyday life and challenges of medium-sized freight forwarders in an increasingly digital world. The insight from the project was that companies also need to collaborate digitally and cannot do so today for a variety of reasons. We looked for solutions to these obstacles (including lack of skilled workers, trust, dependencies), and in the process the concept behind NeoCargo was born.
How did the founding team come together?
We already knew each other through Prof. Furmans’ chair at KIT. Through the consulting project, we realized that the cooperation works and that we complement each other very well. We decided to found NeoCargo AG together at the end of 2021 because we received a lot of support and positive feedback from the market.
Where do you see the hurdles in the start-up process? Where did you get support?
A big hurdle for us was to find the right structure for our company and to provide that with the appropriate agreements between all partners. The two of us are not financial or legal experts and got support here through CyberForum. In addition, we talked to other founders from our private network and were also able to win mentors from KIT and industry for our idea.
What was one of your biggest challenges during the founding phase?
We directly founded a stock corporation (AG), which is associated with a lot of bureaucracy but was still the best option in our setup. We had already been able to attract 30 investors for the idea and did a seed funding round right after the foundation. Here we made some rookie mistakes which unnecessarily dragged out the process. We also underestimated that many people (banks, tax advisors, etc.) are not familiar with stock corporations and that there are some subtleties that are different here than with limited liability companies.
Has Corona had an impact on your startup/industry so far and if so, what? (optional)
The Corona pandemic is definitely a catalyst for digitization in logistics. Enormous fluctuations in demand and shortages of skilled workers are creating major challenges for many transportation companies. Our preliminary project with freight forwarders took place in the middle of the pandemic. We discussed many topics and ideas digitally in short, intensive working groups with interested forwarders from all over Germany. It took less than 9 months from the kick-off to the founding of NeoCargo. Without Corona, this would hardly have been possible. On the one hand, the pressure for digitization is there in the industry, but on the other hand, hardly anyone would have gotten involved in this intensive virtual collaboration before Corona.
What qualities do you think a founder should have?
A positive attitude and perseverance. When founding and building a company, not everything works out right away. The motivation to keep trying new things and to find pragmatic solutions are elementary.
What qualities do you think a founder should have?
A positive attitude and perseverance. When founding and building a company, not everything works out right away. The motivation to keep trying new things and to find pragmatic solutions are elementary.
Do you have any practical tips for other young entrepreneurs?
We have a very close exchange with the market in order to understand our users and develop solutions together with them. We would recommend that to anyone, even if you think you’re already doing it, take it to the next level.
What would you perhaps do differently from today’s perspective?
Focus more on the successes that have been achieved and reflect more on what we have actually accomplished and achieved so far. Unfortunately, we forget that too often.
What are your plans for the future? What are your next big milestones?
The next big milestone is the go-live of our platform in the summer.
Thank you so much for answering the questions! ☺
