# Rob van den Heuvel
**Rob van den Heuvel** is a Dutch technology entrepreneur, co-founder and chief executive officer of [Sendcloud](https://www.edgepedia.org/sendcloud), an e-commerce shipping software company founded in 2012 and headquartered in [Eindhoven](https://www.edgepedia.org/eindhoven), Netherlands.[1](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sendcloud-raises-177-million-in-series-c-funding-to-accelerate-growth-of-its-all-in-one-shipping-platform-301377432.html) • [2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) Sendcloud gives online shops a single platform to book, label, track, and manage shipments across dozens of carriers,[3](https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/08/eu-startups-podcast-episode-79-rob-van-den-heuvel-co-founder-ceo-of-sendcloud/) a mission its chief executive has described as bringing "Amazon-level logistics" to smaller merchants.[4](https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/15/sendcloud-nabs-177m-led-by-softbank-to-double-down-on-saas-shipping-as-a-service/) Under van den Heuvel the company raised nearly €175 million, grew to roughly 30,000 merchant customers across eight European markets, cut costs and laid off about a tenth of its staff after heavy 2022 losses, and returned to positive EBITDA in its audited 2025 results.[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) • [5](https://www.dutchitleaders.nl/news/753823/sendcloud-boekt-eerste-operationele-winst) • [6](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/ambitie-rob-van-den-heuvel-sendcloud-mikken-op-grote-overname~f371abf)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born role | Co-founder and CEO of Sendcloud since 2012, based in Eindhoven[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) |
| Co-founders | Sabi Tolou and Bas Smeulders, who together ran phone-accessories webshops before founding the company[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) • [7](https://www.emerce.nl/nieuws/sendcloud-bundelen-straks-alle-vervoerders) |
| Total funding | More than €186 million, including a $177 million Series C led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 in September 2021[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) • [4](https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/15/sendcloud-nabs-177m-led-by-softbank-to-double-down-on-saas-shipping-as-a-service/) |
| Valuation | Around $750 million at the 2021 Series C, per a source close to the deal; more than half a billion euros as of March 2023[4](https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/15/sendcloud-nabs-177m-led-by-softbank-to-double-down-on-saas-shipping-as-a-service/) • [8](https://podric.com/nl/e/rob-den-heuvel-beursgang-sendcloud) |
| Scale | 30,000+ merchants in 2026; revenue of €53.3 million in FY2025[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) • [5](https://www.dutchitleaders.nl/news/753823/sendcloud-boekt-eerste-operationele-winst) |
| Profitability | First positive EBITDA, €1.7 million, and first fully cash-flow positive year in audited FY2025 results[5](https://www.dutchitleaders.nl/news/753823/sendcloud-boekt-eerste-operationele-winst) |
| Setback | €29 million loss in 2022 followed by a 10% layoff round and roughly 30% cost reductions[6](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/ambitie-rob-van-den-heuvel-sendcloud-mikken-op-grote-overname~f371abf) |
## Founding story and the co-founders
The company grew out of the founders' own frustration as online sellers. Van den Heuvel and Bas Smeulders sold phone accessories through Phone-Gadgets.com while Sabi Tolou also ran a webshop; order spikes, especially after a Groupon promotion, forced them to retype customer address data manually into the PostNL system, which they said cost hours of work per surge.[7](https://www.emerce.nl/nieuws/sendcloud-bundelen-straks-alle-vervoerders) In 2012 the three founded Sendcloud in Eindhoven to automate that shipping workflow, with van den Heuvel as CEO.[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/)
The early business took off quickly enough to attract outside money. A first external investment came from Sanoma Ventures in 2015, followed by €2 million from BOM and TIIN Capital in 2016.[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) Two years after launch the founders were turning about €20,000 in monthly revenue at a startup bootcamp; the coaches saw the potential the founders themselves played down, and the bootcamp's investment funded their first employees.[9](https://bron.fontys.nl/alumni-in-top-quote-500-jong-zijn-betekent-risicos-nemen/) In 2017 Sendcloud was named the fastest-growing technology company in the Netherlands in the Deloitte Fast50, on 5,463 percent revenue growth.[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) In a retrospective interview van den Heuvel also recalled a near-bankruptcy after the company was cut off by PostNL in its early years.[10](https://www.7dtv.nl/ondernemer/rob-van-den-heuvel/)
The 2018 pivot to pure software reshaped the business model. Until then Sendcloud resold carrier capacity alongside its software; co-founder Sabi Tolou said dependence on carrier tariffs capped growth, and the company shifted to a pure software-as-a-service model.[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/)
## Funding, valuation and ownership
Sendcloud's rounds before the Series C were modest by later standards. Global Venturing records a $6 million round in 2017 with BOM Brabant Ventures, Bonsai Partners, HenQ, and Tiin Capital; an undisclosed multimillion-euro round with the first three of those in October 2019; and a $14.9 million Series B led by [AXA Venture Partners](https://www.edgepedia.org/axa-venture-partners) in November 2020, joined by BOM Brabant Ventures and Bonsai Partners with debt financing from Rabobank.[11](https://globalventuring.com/blog/2021/09/16/softbank-delivers-for-sendclouds-177m-series-c/) Dutch-language reporting puts that Series B at €12.6 million, raised as headcount grew from 120 to 260.[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) Dutch business media tally nearly €175 million raised across five rounds before further acquisitions.[12](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/techbedrijf-sendcloud-haalt-kracht-uit-geopolitieke-crisis-beursgang-ligt-in-het-verschiet~26ff435)
The Series C changed the company's scale of ambition. On 15 September 2021 Sendcloud announced a $177 million round (reported in European media as €150 million) led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, with a significant strategic investment from [L Catterton](https://www.edgepedia.org/l-catterton) and participation from [HPE Growth](https://www.edgepedia.org/hpe-growth), its largest round by far.[4](https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/15/sendcloud-nabs-177m-led-by-softbank-to-double-down-on-saas-shipping-as-a-service/) • [13](https://www.eu-startups.com/2021/09/eindhoven-based-sendcloud-raises-e150-million-to-accelerate-growth-of-its-all-in-one-shipping-platform/) The company did not disclose its valuation, but a source close to the deal put it at around $750 million.[4](https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/15/sendcloud-nabs-177m-led-by-softbank-to-double-down-on-saas-shipping-as-a-service/) As part of the round, Neil Cunha-Gomes and Monika Wilk of SoftBank Investment Advisers joined the board alongside L Catterton's Ido Krakowsky.[1](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sendcloud-raises-177-million-in-series-c-funding-to-accelerate-growth-of-its-all-in-one-shipping-platform-301377432.html) The three founders retained a majority of the organization after that round, according to Tolou.[12](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/techbedrijf-sendcloud-haalt-kracht-uit-geopolitieke-crisis-beursgang-ligt-in-het-verschiet~26ff435)
## Growth, restructuring and the path to profit
The pandemic first supercharged the business. Before lockdowns Sendcloud had grown 70 to 80 percent a year; during lockdown growth reached 120 percent with 133 percent increases in parcel volumes, and the company employed 400 people with plans to hire 250 more.[4](https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/15/sendcloud-nabs-177m-led-by-softbank-to-double-down-on-saas-shipping-as-a-service/) • [1](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sendcloud-raises-177-million-in-series-c-funding-to-accelerate-growth-of-its-all-in-one-shipping-platform-301377432.html) Revenue rose from almost €82 million to over €111 million between 2020 and 2021, but net losses widened over the same period from more than €2.2 million to almost €8.6 million, and in 2022 the company lost €29 million.[14](https://www.ed.nl/eindhoven/in-plaats-van-fors-meer-banen-erbij-zijn-er-nu-ontslagen-bij-het-onstuimig-gegroeide-sendcloud~ac1d6a09/) • [6](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/ambitie-rob-van-den-heuvel-sendcloud-mikken-op-grote-overname~f371abf)
The October 2022 restructuring marked the turn. Van den Heuvel announced on LinkedIn that 10 percent of staff would go; the Eindhovens Dagblad counted about 40 of 453 full-time positions cut, from a late-September headcount of 500 including freelancers and interns, scrapping the earlier plan to add 250 jobs.[12](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/techbedrijf-sendcloud-haalt-kracht-uit-geopolitieke-crisis-beursgang-ligt-in-het-verschiet~26ff435) • [14](https://www.ed.nl/eindhoven/in-plaats-van-fors-meer-banen-erbij-zijn-er-nu-ontslagen-bij-het-onstuimig-gegroeide-sendcloud~ac1d6a09/) The founders cut housing in Eindhoven and Munich, reduced product investment and in-housed external development; total costs including housing fell by about 30 percent.[12](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/techbedrijf-sendcloud-haalt-kracht-uit-geopolitieke-crisis-beursgang-ligt-in-het-verschiet~26ff435) Van den Heuvel said the company did not expect to raise additional money in the near future, with SoftBank and L Catterton signaling the tech market looked unfavorable for the next 12 to 24 months, and he described a shift from fast growth to sustainable growth aimed at profitability.[14](https://www.ed.nl/eindhoven/in-plaats-van-fors-meer-banen-erbij-zijn-er-nu-ontslagen-bij-het-onstuimig-gegroeide-sendcloud~ac1d6a09/) • [15](https://siliconcanals.com/sendcloud-shipping-software-ecommerce-cloud-digitisation/)
The audited results eventually bore out the strategy. In fiscal year 2025 revenue rose 24 percent to €53.3 million and the company posted positive EBITDA of €1.7 million, against negative €11.4 million in 2024, becoming fully cash-flow positive for the first time; France was the fastest-growing market at 59 percent revenue growth, and all eight active country markets reached break-even or better by year end.[5](https://www.dutchitleaders.nl/news/753823/sendcloud-boekt-eerste-operationele-winst) Van den Heuvel said the business model had definitively proven itself, and the company expects further revenue and EBITDA margin improvement in 2026.[5](https://www.dutchitleaders.nl/news/753823/sendcloud-boekt-eerste-operationele-winst) His own retrospective dates the turnaround to 2023, describing a profitable year with 400 employees and 50 percent year-on-year revenue growth; the audited figures show 2025 as the first full positive-EBITDA and cash-flow positive year.[10](https://www.7dtv.nl/ondernemer/rob-van-den-heuvel/) • [5](https://www.dutchitleaders.nl/news/753823/sendcloud-boekt-eerste-operationele-winst)
## Scale, product and acquisitions
Sendcloud's platform figures have grown with each stage. At the 2021 Series C it served more than 23,000 customers across the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Belgium, and Austria.[1](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sendcloud-raises-177-million-in-series-c-funding-to-accelerate-growth-of-its-all-in-one-shipping-platform-301377432.html) By March 2023 it was processing about 10 million parcels a month with nearly 400 employees.[8](https://podric.com/nl/e/rob-den-heuvel-beursgang-sendcloud) As of August 2024 the platform offered access to more than 100 carriers, over 7,000 shipping methods, and more than 400,000 parcel points across Europe, with 60-plus webshop integrations and 750-plus partners.[3](https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/08/eu-startups-podcast-episode-79-rob-van-den-heuvel-co-founder-ceo-of-sendcloud/)
Three acquisitions extended the platform after the funding climate turned. Sendcloud bought the Eindhoven AI data platform Tracey, a twelve-person startup providing insight into shipping delays and carrier performance.[6](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/ambitie-rob-van-den-heuvel-sendcloud-mikken-op-grote-overname~f371abf) In June 2024 it announced its intent to acquire isendu, an Italian shipping automation platform supporting over 1,000 online businesses, with completion expected by the end of Q3 2024.[16](https://www.sendcloud.com/blog/sendcloud-intent-to-acquire-isendu/) In December 2024 it acquired Lox, a delivery issue management company whose automation cuts claim processing times by up to 80 percent.[17](https://www.sendcloud.com/blog/lox-acquisition/) By 2026 the company served more than 30,000 merchants with roughly 400 to 450 employees.[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/)
## How it compares with its rivals
Within European shipping software, van den Heuvel positions Sendcloud against a spread of specialists: ShippyPro of Italy as the most direct competitor, Metapack (part of Auctane) serving enterprise retailers, Shippo as its US counterpart, Easyship focused on cross-border shipping and Packlink aimed at smaller webshops.[2](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/) At the time of Sendcloud's 2021 Series C the American rival Shippo was larger on both counts that matter for scale: it had 100,000 customers to Sendcloud's 23,000 and had raised money in June 2021 at a $1 billion valuation.[4](https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/15/sendcloud-nabs-177m-led-by-softbank-to-double-down-on-saas-shipping-as-a-service/)
## Public standing and the millionaire-list estimates
Dutch business magazine Quote has twice placed van den Heuvel on its rankings of young self-made wealth, with different figures. In May 2025, at age 33, he was ranked 15th among Dutch millionaires under 40 and the richest from Brabant, with an estimated €90 million attributed to his Sendcloud stake.[18](https://www.ad.nl/eindhoven/rob-33-uit-eindhoven-is-rijkste-selfmade-miljonair-van-brabant-dat-bedrag-klopt-niet-helemaal~a71dc333/) The Quote 500 list carried an €80 million estimate each for van den Heuvel, then 34, and Sabi Tolou, 37, ranking them 17th and 20th among the richest [Dutch people](https://www.edgepedia.org/dutch-people) under 40.[9](https://bron.fontys.nl/alumni-in-top-quote-500-jong-zijn-betekent-risicos-nemen/) Van den Heuvel disputed the higher figure, saying it was significantly overestimated and based on assumptions that do not match how the company is financed and structured; since the founders' stakes are private and the company has not published a valuation since the 2021 round, the estimates rest on outside assumptions.[18](https://www.ad.nl/eindhoven/rob-33-uit-eindhoven-is-rijkste-selfmade-miljonair-van-brabant-dat-bedrag-klopt-niet-helemaal~a71dc333/)
## References
1. [Sendcloud Raises $177 Million in Series C Funding, PR Newswire](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sendcloud-raises-177-million-in-series-c-funding-to-accelerate-growth-of-its-all-in-one-shipping-platform-301377432.html)
2. [Sendcloud: Oprichters, Businessmodel, Omzet & Groei (2026), XTechStartup](https://xtechstartup.nl/sendcloud-startup/)
3. [EU-Startups Podcast Episode 79: Rob van den Heuvel](https://www.eu-startups.com/2024/08/eu-startups-podcast-episode-79-rob-van-den-heuvel-co-founder-ceo-of-sendcloud/)
4. [Sendcloud nabs $177M led by SoftBank, TechCrunch](https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/15/sendcloud-nabs-177m-led-by-softbank-to-double-down-on-saas-shipping-as-a-service/)
5. [Sendcloud boekt eerste operationele winst, Dutch IT Leaders](https://www.dutchitleaders.nl/news/753823/sendcloud-boekt-eerste-operationele-winst)
6. [Rob van den Heuvel (Sendcloud) 'We mikken op grote overname', De Ondernemer](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/ambitie-rob-van-den-heuvel-sendcloud-mikken-op-grote-overname~f371abf)
7. ['We bundelen straks alle vervoerders', Emerce](https://www.emerce.nl/nieuws/sendcloud-bundelen-straks-alle-vervoerders)
8. [Rob van den Heuvel over de beursgang van Sendcloud, Podric](https://podric.com/nl/e/rob-den-heuvel-beursgang-sendcloud)
9. [Alumni in top Quote 500, Fontys](https://bron.fontys.nl/alumni-in-top-quote-500-jong-zijn-betekent-risicos-nemen/)
10. [Rob van den Heuvel, 7DTV](https://www.7dtv.nl/ondernemer/rob-van-den-heuvel/)
11. [SoftBank delivers for Sendcloud's $177m series C, Global Venturing](https://globalventuring.com/blog/2021/09/16/softbank-delivers-for-sendclouds-177m-series-c/)
12. [Techbedrijf Sendcloud groeit na crisis: beursgang in het verschiet?, De Ondernemer](https://www.deondernemer.nl/actueel/techbedrijf-sendcloud-haalt-kracht-uit-geopolitieke-crisis-beursgang-ligt-in-het-verschiet~26ff435)
13. [Eindhoven-based Sendcloud raises €150 million, EU-Startups](https://www.eu-startups.com/2021/09/eindhoven-based-sendcloud-raises-e150-million-to-accelerate-growth-of-its-all-in-one-shipping-platform/)
14. [Ontslagen bij het onstuimig gegroeide Sendcloud, Eindhovens Dagblad](https://www.ed.nl/eindhoven/in-plaats-van-fors-meer-banen-erbij-zijn-er-nu-ontslagen-bij-het-onstuimig-gegroeide-sendcloud~ac1d6a09/)
15. [Inside Sendcloud's plan to make shipping smarter, Silicon Canals](https://siliconcanals.com/sendcloud-shipping-software-ecommerce-cloud-digitisation/)
16. [Sendcloud announces intent to acquire isendu, Sendcloud](https://www.sendcloud.com/blog/sendcloud-intent-to-acquire-isendu/)
17. [Sendcloud acquires Lox, Sendcloud](https://www.sendcloud.com/blog/lox-acquisition/)
18. [Rob (33) uit Eindhoven is rijkste selfmade miljonair van Brabant, AD](https://www.ad.nl/eindhoven/rob-33-uit-eindhoven-is-rijkste-selfmade-miljonair-van-brabant-dat-bedrag-klopt-niet-helemaal~a71dc333/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Economics and business › Founders, operators, and investors › Technology founders and companies › Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Latin America technology › Europe technology › Software and enterprise technology*
*Initially written Sep 19, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Sep 19, 2026*
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