how.fm rakes in $5.4 million to digitise training for warehouse workers

In an industry that sees exceptionally high levels of staff turnover, employers in warehousing and distribution need to undertake huge effort when hiring, training and ensuring compliance for each employee. As online shopping and e-commerce grow, increasing competition for efficient staff can cost businesses a great deal. 

Enabling warehouse operators to onboard, upskill, and support their employees in a hassle-free manner, Cologne-based SaaS training platform how.fm has raised $5.4 million in funding. The newly infused capital will drive the company’s recruitment process to grow its commercial teams in Cologne and London. The company aims to expand into the manufacturing, retail and food industries as well.

Leading the round was Join Capital, with previous investors Kindred Capital and Capnamic Ventures also participating. Other investors in the round included ex-Amazon UK CEO Christopher North, Forto CEO Michael Wax, and angel investors such as Allegro CEO Francois Nuyts and Andrej Henkler.

Founded in 2019 by serial entrepreneurs Andreas Kwiatkowski and Farhoud Cheraghi, how.fm aims to boost onboarding of manual labour by disseminating knowledge and optimising processes across enterprises. The how.fm software covers pre-onboarding, orientation, health and safety, job-related skills and work instructions.

Andreas Kwiatkowski, co-founder and CEO of how.fm said: “how.fm aims to streamline the process of repetitive staff onboarding and management – in each individual employee’s native language. This allows senior staff to focus on the most valuable areas of the business.”

Jan Borgstädt, founding partner of Join Capital and new how.fm board member added: “The logistics industry is under immense pressure to deal with the constant increase in e-commerce, and most logistics contractors have very antiquated onboarding processes. We liked the execution power that drives the founders as well as their positive resonance within Join’s network, who, recognised the potential added value in their day-to-day logistics operations.”