Prolo raises GBP £4.2 million seed to automate procurement

Prolo has raised £4.2 million in seed funding in an oversubscribed round led by Triple Point Ventures.

The London-based startup also attracted backing from the a16z Scout Fund, Anamcara Capital, Concrete VC, Foundation Ventures, Haatch, Koro Capital, Love Ventures and Portfolio Ventures.

Prolo sells procurement services to small and medium-sized construction firms, where buying materials, equipment and plant hire often still depends on staff calling merchants and suppliers individually for quotes. It uses a mix of artificial intelligence and human support to source orders across a network of more than 185 suppliers.

The business also offers customers credit terms of up to 90 days to address payment delays common across the construction sector. The financing is designed to help smaller contractors take on larger jobs without tying up as much working capital in materials and equipment.

Manual process

Construction procurement remains one of the more labour-intensive parts of running a contracting business, particularly for smaller firms without the buying scale of larger rivals. Prolo argues that these businesses often face weaker pricing, less visibility over supply options and longer delays when sourcing products.

It cited data from the Chartered Institute of Building showing that supply chain disruption and manual workflows contribute to around 40% of projects being delayed by an average of five months. Those pressures have become more acute as smaller contractors contend with tighter margins and volatile material costs.

Site managers can place requests through WhatsApp, email or phone instead of contacting multiple merchants directly. Prolo then searches for available supply and pricing, aiming to secure rates more commonly available to larger contractors.

Founder background

Prolo was founded by James Morris-Manuel, who previously founded property technology business Virtual Walkthrough. The company was later acquired by Matterport, where Morris-Manuel went on to serve as EMEA managing director.

The new funding will be used for sales and marketing, as well as product development, as Prolo expands support for its base of SME contractors.

The focus on small contractors comes at a difficult time for the UK construction market. While large housebuilders and major infrastructure groups have greater leverage with suppliers and lenders, smaller firms are more exposed to delayed payments and sudden price changes in core materials.

Investors in the round said procurement remains an area where software and automation could directly affect margins. For contractors operating on thin returns, small changes in buying terms or payment timing can determine whether a project remains profitable.

Commenting on the raise, Morris-Manuel linked the business to long-standing inefficiencies in construction purchasing.

"For decades, SME contractors have been penalised by a lack of price transparency and inefficient ordering, often paying a premium simply because they lack the time and purchasing power of the Tier-1 giants. Through scaling Virtual Walkthrough and my time at Matterport, we learned how to build robust tech that solves very real, very painful operational bottlenecks for the built environment. With Prolo, we are shifting the dynamic of construction supply chains entirely. The demand we are seeing right out of the gate is phenomenal," said James Morris-Manuel, founder and CEO of Prolo.

Triple Point Ventures said its investment thesis was centred on the operational burden procurement creates for construction businesses and the scale of the UK market.

"Construction companies are vital to the UK economy, and they will play an increasingly important role as the country looks to accelerate the delivery of new housing and infrastructure. Procurement remains one of the most manual and margin-sensitive parts of running a construction business, and Prolo has a huge opportunity to change that. By using AI to help firms automate procurement, find the right products at the best prices, and improve their margins, Prolo is solving a real and urgent problem for the industry. We're excited to be backing James, a repeat founder with a strong track record, as he builds a category-defining business in construction procurement," said Sam Stone, investor at Triple Point Ventures.