On-demand skip hire company plans expansion following £1.2m fundraise

A proptech startup offering skip hire via an app has raised £1.2m in funding in a bid to make construction a more ‘on-demand’ industry.

London-based Skrap, a construction hire online marketplace, will use the fundraise to expand its service to other parts of the industry including concrete, portaloos, machinery and more.

The fundraise, led by Vanneck Investments, saw participation from a host of entrepreneurs and angel investors including Eamon Jubbawy of Onfido, Anil Stocker from MarketFinance, Paul Huntingdon of ARM and Peter Brodnicki from MAB.

Founded in 2017, Skrap was designed to automate the entire construction supply chain in cities across the world, by allowing SME builders to order any construction hire service at the click of a button.

The idea came after the firm’s founders, who ran a construction business, identified like-minded firms were using unorganised, manual and fragmented ordering systems.

Skrap’s team of 25 developers built and trialled the app with hundreds of suppliers across London, Manchester and Birmingham, completing 10,000 of deliveries to companies before launching the fundraise.

Founder Hussain Hilli commented: “The UK construction hire industry is a £20bn market, yet it is poorly served with not fit-for-purpose services in a digital age.

“Skrap is well positioned to bring innovative solutions to help transform the industry and make it a beacon of industry once again.

“We’re thrilled to have some amazing investors on board and look forward to leaning on their expertise as we broaden the horizons for Skrap. Our team has huge ambitions to scale across the UK and globally.”