WhiteClouds
[Closed for Investment] WhiteClouds can make white clouds seem real with their full color 3D printing software platform. They offer custom 3D printing for businesses, and their platform allows businesses to produce customized products for their clients. These products range from a model brain with a tumor based on a patient’s personal MRI to a custom figurine for a super fan. So far, they’ve earned $8.4M in revenue, have two pending patents, and acquired other software 3D printing companies. Customers include the largest anatomical models supplier and two of the largest healthcare 3D visualization developers in the US and Europe, as well as the second largest video game publisher.
Investment Overview
Raised: $195,041
Deal Terms
Total Commitments ($USD)
- Platform
- Wefunder
- Start Date
- 07/27/2018
- Close Date
- 09/29/2018
$100,000
$1,070,000
$1,000
SAFE
RegCF
$20,000,000
10%
Company & Team
Company
- Year Founded
- 2013
- Industry
- Consumer Products, Goods & Services
- Tech Sector
- Location
- Ogden, Utah
- Company Website
-
Visit Website
Team
- Employees
- 31
Financials
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Summary
In September of 2018, WhiteClouds was rated a Top Deal by KingsCrowd. As a reminder, WhiteClouds is a 3D printing as a service solution that enables organizations to easily order both prototype products as well as consumer products with no in-house design or 3D printing expertise.
With rapid delivery on high-end customized color parts both big and small, the team has found an ability to service multiple verticals with beautiful end-products.
At the time we rated the company a Top Deal because of its strong market traction, long term defensible moat in a growing industry, and proven management team including CEO Jerry Ropelato, who built a $100M business prior,.
With the team back for another raise, we are analyzing the business to determine if it warrants continued investment.
Business Model Refresher
As a reminder, WhiteClouds provides 3D printing as a service in its 60,000 square foot printing facility. Their 3D printers can print in full color with extreme precision, capable of printing details as small as 16 microns, or ⅙ the size of a human hair. With over 70 production printers, WhiteClouds is capable of producing a large variety of prints in many different sizes, enabling them to help any company with their needs.
They produce their 3D prints on demand, and often times the company can complete orders within a day, producing thousands of individually customized products every month.
The global 3D printing market is estimated to be a $30B+ global market opportunity by 2023, up from $7.9B in 2016 driven by an improvement in the end products produced by 3D printers to be utilized in more consumer interfacing applications.
Business Updates
- Healthy Top Line Growth: When we last rated the company in 2018, White Clouds had stated 2017 revenues of $2.29M. With 2018 closed out the team reported ~$3.5M in fiscal year revenues, a 53% CAGR in top line growth, after having discontinued less profitable lines of business in 2017.With strong growth from a portfolio of customers that includes the likes of Google, IBM, Amgen, Harley Davidson and more, it is apparent that White Clouds is building a strong book of business driven by its position in the market as a large and versatile 3D print provider. Source: Company material
- Improving Underlying Business Fundamentals: Having discontinued less profitable lines of business in 2017 led to a gross margin of 66% in 2018 versus 53% in 2017 and the team expects to elevate that to 69% during 2019.Part of the improvement in bottom line cost comes from the $496 customer acquisition cost in relation to $21,578 in customer lifetime value with a 98% retention rate. Many of the efforts put in place by the team around SEO (search engine optimization), which you may remember is a core competency of this team, are taking hold. Normalizing the company’s financials for past acquisitions and capital investments reveals a company with a strong, and thus far successful, plan for growth on a trajectory heading toward profitability in the next few years.
- Large Entity Customer Acquisition: WhiteClouds continues to gain a foothold with large corporate customers. Across its portfolio of customers, it has built a strong presence in healthcare, event-planning, and consumer retail companies.Currently, the company has 70+ Fortune 1000 companies, 38 of which were acquired in 2018 alone. These Fortune 1000 companies include very diverse brands like American Express, NASA, Amazon, Disney, and Google. WhiteClouds’ acquisition of Fortune 1000 customers indicates their ability to serve large clients with trusted quality products.
As that list continues to grow the network effects of being known as the trusted provider of 3D printed products will help separate WhiteClouds from other potential competitors.
Company Funding & Growth
Funding history
| Close Date | Platform | Valuation | Total Raised | Security Type | Status | Reg Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04/30/2022 | Wefunder | $24,000,000 | $86,200 | SAFE | Funded | RegCF |
| 04/26/2019 | Wefunder | $20,000,000 | $183,773 | SAFE | Funded | RegCF |
| 09/29/2018 | Wefunder | $20,000,000 | $195,041 | SAFE | Funded | RegCF |
| 07/31/2017 | Wefunder | $18,000,000 | $1,070,000 | SAFE | Funded | RegCF |
Growth Charts
Revenue History
Note: Revenue data points reflect the latest of either the most recent fiscal year's financials, or updated revenues directly from the founder, at each raise's close date.
Valuation History
Price per Share History
Note: Share prices shown in earlier rounds may not be indicative of any stock splits.
Employee History
Founder Profile
Founder Profile with WhiteClouds Founder & CEO, Jerry Ropelato
3D printing may not have found the cache it hoped for with consumers. However, it has become a cost efficient and rapid manufacturing process for producing models for design in architecture, the medical field, toys, shoes and everything in between.Be it prototyping products or creating end consumer products with 3D printing technology there is a major market opportunity across industry verticals for a 3D printing solution. That is where Jerry Ropelato and his team at WhiteClouds come into play.
Now in their second Wefunder raise, he and his team have built the first 3D Printing in the Cloud for businesses that need access to 3D models and products without on-house capabilities. With several Fortune 500 clients, and growing capability, this startup has some terrific potential.