P1ston, a startup based in NY’s Capital Region, to be featured on Launch NY Investor Network

 

 Fast-growing P1ston lowers costs at small- and mid-sized businesses by increasing supply chain effectiveness

More than 320 accredited investors now looking at deals on Investor Network

 

Launch NY is pleased to announce that P1ston is the 5th company to be featured on its Investor Network this year, creating an opportunity for accredited investors to fund the growth of an exciting software startup from the convenience of their laptop or smartphone.

 

The Launch NY Investor Network is a convenient platform for people interested in making angel investments in high-growth startups based in Upstate New York. The syndicate network is exclusively dedicated to featuring pre-vetted investment opportunities in startups led by talented innovators. Members of the Investor Network are under no obligation to invest but can also commit as little as $10,000 into deals that they choose with Launch NY managing the rest of the steps.

 

P1ston was co-founded in 2020 by experienced tech executive P.J. Bellomo, who created a SaaS platform that answers the supply chain problems experienced by small- and mid-sized businesses in the manufacturing and distribution industries. Those businesses still rely on email, spreadsheets and phone calls to manage their supply chains, creating constant uncertainty and disruption.

 

P1ston’s software brings the best practices from Fortune 500 companies to that market, creating visibility and transparency across an organization. The company brought a full commercial version of its platform to the market in mid-2023, and it is in the process of going from four to 10 customers, with a swelling pipeline.

 

“P1ston is led by a rock star team that understands the problems in the supply chain space and knows how to talk to its customers,” said Marnie LaVigne, Ph.D., the president and CEO of Launch NY. “We see this as the kind of company that could attract outside capital to Upstate New York and sell to customers across the globe. Investor Network participants are seeing this deal at a perfect time, as it has early mover advantage in a huge market that is now beginning to scale quickly. Launch NY will continue presenting high-quality deals coming out of Upstate NY to our growing syndicate of Investor Network investors who share our passion to ‘InvestLocal’.”

 

Launch NY’s Investor Network surpassed 300 members last year and has continued to grow in 2024. It is among several investment vehicles, including nonprofit and for-profit seed funds, that make Launch NY the most active seed fund in New York state. Accredited investors can join Launch NY’s Investor Network at no cost while it is waiving membership fees for the first 500 members. For more information on P1ston and the Investor Network, accredited investors can submit at https://launchny.typeform.com/to/RvV8A9.

 

Bellomo is a former manufacturing engineer and consultant who left his corporate career to join a startup, Commerce5, that was sold three years later for $50 million. He went on to work as CEO for several other startups before co-founding P1ston with David Dussault, the founder and CEO of manufacturing company Package One Industries. Dussault was looking to ease the pressure on his company’s complex supply chain, from getting quotes to order acknowledgements to shipping dates. The automated solution they created, P1ston, allows them to communicate and track all those moving parts in a single interconnected place. Among early customers, P1ston’s solution has improved on-time shipping rates, reduced labor time and led to higher customer satisfaction.

 

“We’re bringing the kind of tools used by Fortune 500 companies to small- and mid-sized businesses, saving them time and money and driving better results for their customers,” Bellomo said. “Now that we’ve proven our product solves a specific pain point, we’re investing in sales, marketing and customer onboarding to scale this company across the world.”

 

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About Launch NY: Launch NY is the only nonprofit venture development organization and U.S. Treasury-designated Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that serves and directly funds startups in Upstate New York. The core mission of Launch NY is to identify, support and invest in high‐growth, high‐impact companies and to catalyze the entrepreneurial culture of Upstate New York on behalf of job and wealth creation. Since its inception in 2012, Launch NY has served more than 1,650 companies which have gone on to raise more than $1.4 billion, generate more than $250 million in annual revenues and supporting more than 5,200 jobs. Launch NY delivers its mission via mentorship and capital access programs, starting with pro bono mentoring through its Entrepreneur-in-Residence program, Founders Go Big program for underrepresented and underserved founders, and Emerging Cleantech Opportunity (ECO) Incubator. These programs prepare entrepreneurs for investment capital from multiple sources, including Launch NY’s InvestLocal Financing Programs comprised of nonprofit and for-profit investment funds, and Investor Network deals marketplace that features hundreds of accredited investors. Through these vehicles, Launch NY is the most active seed investor in New York state and has been ranked among the top 5 nonprofit seed funds in the country. Women- and/or BIPOC-led companies have consistently comprised over 40% of Launch NY’s mentored companies and have received 60% of Launch NY’s investment capital.

 

For more information about Launch NY, its programs, and other entrepreneurial opportunities, visit www.launchny.org, and follow Launch NY on Facebook , Twitter and LinkedIn.