Launch HN: Procoto (YC W21) – Procurement SaaS for SMB
Most growing companies find themselves juggling different systems/spreadsheets and overspending with their vendors. Procoto replaces the multiple systems to become their central hub while identifying savings opportunities based on historic rates.
Why us? We come from the procurement world and spent time in 30+ procurement platforms as both vendors and users. But when we went to switch from spreadsheets to a centralized solution, we couldn’t find what we were looking for. Our only options were to stay in spreadsheets or to jump to a six-figure platform. We’d be forced to pay for more features than we needed in an outdated UI/UX.
So we left to build Procoto for people like us – procurement pros at small and mid-sized companies (25-1000 FTEs) looking for a simpler, smarter way to manage their sourcing process. We help our users get there in three ways:
Savings. By standardizing and leveraging historic pricing data, Procoto identifies savings opportunities to drive down third-party spend.
Automated Databasing. Every contract, vendor, and price point is systemically stored in Procoto.
Collaboration. Procoto fosters internal communication and collaboration across teams and remote workers. It’s not a tool built just for the procurement team. It delivers status updates and reporting to all stakeholders in the organization.
In short, we’re building the procurement solution we couldn’t find. What do you all think? We’d love your feedback. For any procurement pros out there, what would make your life easier?
40 comments
[ 1.9 ms ] story [ 78.7 ms ] threadE.g.:
"We get you out of multiple systems and spreadsheets without the cost or feature bloat of the big guys[.]"
"Procoto drives down vendor spend, streamlines the sourcing process, and automates purchasing, contract, and vendor data[.]"
Sounds like a cool idea, best of luck to you both!
The design looks a little bit basic, and the animated boxes are annoying. Sorry for the negative feedback.
I also don't think it's as bad as you make it sound - the product images could be sharper though.
I'm your target, but lost interest because not disclosing pricing usually means it's expensive.
Hope this helps!
Otherwise, there's a funny sort of irony in being a spend management tool for other SaaS products without clear pricing on your own.
We're taking a simpler, more user-friendly SaaS approach so that similar tools/processes become more accessible to smaller companies that may not have dedicated procurement functions or the budget for one of the big guys.
1. https://asana.com/pricing 2. https://www.vendr.com/pricing
That said, in the interest of giving you a real answer... The numbers we've thrown around for the base package are sub-$100/user/mo and the mid-tier sub-$500/user/mo. Tailored pricing for custom solutions.
IMO there really is very little in the SMB space for Sourcing and CLM. Procurify is likely the closest but it’s more P2P focused (great company and team though).
Up until recently, I think most players in the space struggled to figure out SMB Sourcing or rather don’t think it’s a huge opportunity on its own. Smaller companies typically don’t do much sourcing volume, so providers that try to play in that space tend towards P2P. And the mid market is HUGE for sourcing.
Now it could be classic innovators dilemma, and these guys will figure it out and then move upmarket to mid-market. I hope they do! The world needs better buying tools, regardless of size.
A new flavour are the full-service procurement vendors out there. The idea being you basically outsource your procurement to them on specific categories (like IT, SaaS, etc). They offer some compelling value to SMBs.
Anyways, I wish these guys luck - it’s an exciting opportunity if they can crack the SMB nut.
I don’t want to out my prior employer, but just wanted you to know we thought the pricing was very good. Maybe it’s different for other gov entities, but we were definitely open to paying more.
I'm still not quite clear on what service you're offering.
Are you saying you will help me find the right vendor for certain services/procurement needs that I would have as a company? For example, instead of me having a contract with Office Depot to supply all of my 'Office Supplies' purchases at X dollar, you would recommend for me another supplier who would do the same for lower figure? Same thing for service vendors?
Do you also handle systems/software for the individual employees to buy stuff against those contracts?
Today, the tool tracks your vendor pricing, contract terms, and vendor profile information via sourcing 'projects.' So the app can compare vendors and pricing if the data is available, but it can't outright recommend a vendor with whom you've never interacted.
For your second question... You're asking if the app serves as a POS solution as well? No, but potentially down the line depending on user need. Most of our customers today use the tool for major product/service purchases that are made directly with their vendors.
I happen to run a startup that does just that (among other services provided by our inventory management platform). Do you have any APIs we can hook to?
From my understanding of the ERP/CLM space - the reason SAP or coupa etc are expensive is because of the customization and implementation costs associated with deployments.
Even 50-100 person companies have highly customised procurement processes with inter location approvals, transfers etc. How does the system handle all of that?
Do you integrate with other modules like finance & accounting, budgeting, inventory?
There is really a need for a self service SAAS in this space..but this is a very difficult segment to compete in with the majors due to implementation complexities. Wishing you the best!
We do allow some customization of fields and workflows already, but there's plenty more to come. We want the UX to be similar to that of an Asana or Trello but with the available feature set of a P2P, CLM, VRM.
No integrations on the finance side yet, but it's one of the recurring asks that comes up in conversations and is on our roadmap. We don't want our customers entering cost info twice just as much as they don't want to do it.
Really appreciate the kind words at the end there. It's something I would have loved to have in a past life so trying to make it happen for others.