Bridgesmile, a Tokyo start-up that organises the installation of products after they are sold, said on 28 September 2026 that it had raised ¥819m (about $5.2m) in a Series A round.
Twelve investors took part: Kampo NEXT Partners, Mobile Internet Capital, PARTNERS FUND, mint, Gazelle Capital, MUFG Capital, New Commerce Ventures, Innovation Engine, Aflac Ventures Japan, INNOVATION V Capital, GIB and DE-SIGN Capital. The company did not name a lead, but Mobile Internet Capital said in the announcement that it had made the lead investment.
The money came through a third-party share allotment and other financing. Bridgesmile did not disclose a valuation.
What Bridgesmile does
Bridgesmile works in the gap between selling a product and getting it installed. It covers home appliances, housing equipment, car accessories and infrastructure such as electric-vehicle chargers. Its consumer-facing service, Tonari no Shitsuji-san, handles on-site installation of items including air conditioners, security cameras, smart door locks and computers, according to Sogyo Techo.
The company connects with the systems of online shops and physical stores such as electronics retailers so that a customer can book installation at the moment of purchase. It then takes over the rest of the process: assigning one of the more than 1,900 professional installers in its nationwide network, scheduling, handling customer questions and checking the quality of the work.
Bridgesmile said much of the industry still runs on phone calls, faxes and handwritten slips. Its job-assignment engine matches installers to jobs based on their skills and location, and the company said this had made dispatch operations six times more productive than manual arrangements. Mobile Internet Capital said Bridgesmile had built a track record with retailers including Amazon.
What the money is for
Bridgesmile said it would spend the money in three areas. The first is AI and software for what it calls an operating system for the installation industry, including job assignment that learns from installers' skills, past ratings and travel risk, and automated customer communication.
The second is a super app for installers that goes beyond scheduling. Using work history and quality scores as a credit base, the company plans to offer same-day payment after a job is finished and support for small loans.
The third is hiring across all functions, including business development, product management, construction management and in-house electricians. The company described the installation market it targets as worth more than ¥1.3tn.
The company and its backers
Bridgesmile was founded in April 2023 and is based in Minato, Tokyo. It did not report earlier funding rounds or its headcount in the announcement.
In comments published with the release, a partner at Mobile Internet Capital said last-mile labour in Japan faced rising demand and a shrinking workforce at the same time, and that installation work remained split between sellers and installers. Kampo NEXT Partners and PARTNERS FUND also said they backed the company for combining hands-on field operations with software. The comments were published in Japanese.
Company website: bridgesmile.co.jp