Celes closes $5M Series A to accelerate retail AI across LATAM
Barranquilla-based Celes has closed a $5 million Series A round led by Brazilian fund SP Ventures, with participation from Fulcrum Global Capital (United States), 30N Ventures (Mexico), and Taram Capital (Chile). The capital will fund expansion across Latin America, with particular focus on Brazil, the region's largest retail market.
Founded in 2023 by Luis Ricardo Almanza (CEO), Luis Ballestas (COO), and David Florián (CTO), Celes develops AI agents and predictive algorithms that calculate demand, optimize inventory, and define daily product distribution for physical stores. The platform processes 55 million daily forecasts for more than 8,500 stores across eight countries and autonomously executes over 90 percent of replenishment decisions.
The company addresses a persistent problem in Latin American retail: empty shelves and stranded inventory caused by forecasting failures. Its clients include Olímpica, FEMSA Salud, and Tiendas Neto. According to reporting in Forbes Chile, implementation at Olímpica reduced out-of-stock incidents and lowered logistics costs.
Celes's competitive advantage lies partly in its integration strategy. Rather than requiring retailers to replace existing systems, the platform integrates with current ERPs such as SAP or Oracle to automate the logistics cycle without implementation friction. This approach explains how Celes reached operations in eight countries in less than three years.
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Why Celes's Brazil entry signals growing demand for supply chain engineering talent
Celes plans to use Series A capital to consolidate operations in Colombia, Mexico, and Chile before initiating formal expansion in Brazil. According to reporting in Forbes Chile, the investment reflects investor confidence in building more efficient supply chains across the region.
Brazil expansion will require local teams in engineering, data science, and customer success capable of integrating the platform with Brazilian retailers' existing technology stacks. The market for machine learning engineers and supply chain specialists with retail operations and ERP integration experience remains competitive.
Colombia's growing AI startup ecosystem has produced several companies now expanding regionally, creating demand for bilingual technical talent with cross-border deployment experience. According to reporting in Forbes Chile, data alignment between retailers and manufacturers, actors that historically plan separately, is central to reducing operational costs and avoiding lost sales and stagnant inventory.
The investor syndicate reflects regional capital flows into supply chain AI. Taram Capital, the Chilean fund founded by Felipe Camposano and Christian Onetto that began formal activity in 2022, announced Taram II in February with up to $45 million focused on technology and software companies, leveraged by Corfo and backed by entrepreneurs among its contributors. The Celes round represents one of the first public deployments of that new fund in the regional ecosystem.
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Regional expansion milestones to watch as Celes scales operations
Celes's roadmap centers on three priorities: consolidating existing markets, entering Brazil, and deepening integration with consumer packaged goods manufacturers. The platform's technical infrastructure supports operations across multiple store networks, though geographic expansion will test the company's ability to hire and retain specialized talent across multiple jurisdictions.
Brazil's retail market presents both opportunity and complexity. The country's fragmented landscape includes regional chains with varied technology maturity, requiring Celes to adapt implementation processes while maintaining the low-friction integration model that enabled rapid adoption elsewhere. Hiring cycles for senior technical roles in Brazil typically extend longer, particularly for positions requiring domain expertise in retail supply chain operations.
Mexico represents another growth vector, with 30N Ventures participating as an investor.[()] The fund's participation suggests Celes has identified specific retail segments or geographic corridors within the country for near-term expansion. Mexican retailers have historically lagged peers in Colombia and Chile in supply chain digitization, creating opportunities for platforms that can demonstrate ROI within quarterly planning cycles.
The investor composition also signals Celes's positioning for eventual cross-border M&A or partnership activity. Fulcrum Global Capital, the venture capital arm of a U.S. agriculture producer, invests in companies addressing challenges facing global food systems. Its participation alongside regional Latin American funds suggests Celes may pursue integration opportunities with North American retail or CPG companies operating supply chains spanning both regions.
For workforce planning teams at retailers and CPG manufacturers, Celes's growth trajectory indicates sustained demand for professionals who can bridge legacy ERP systems and modern AI tooling. The platform executes over 90% of replenishment decisions autonomously, which does not eliminate planning roles but shifts required competencies toward exception management, algorithm supervision, and cross-functional coordination between merchandising, logistics, and technology teams.[()]