Spaceship, a Singapore-based startup business specializing in valet self-storage services, has launched with financial backing from Ardent Capital, a group of entrepreneurs interested in growing and developing technology-related enterprises in Southeast Asia. Spaceship uses an online platform that allows customers to schedule free item pickup, keep track of belongings through a dashboard, schedule delivery of items home, or send items to a friend.

Spaceship secured an undisclosed seed investment from Ardent last November and went live in January. After three weeks in business, it had 35 residential customers and three business clients, according to the source.

The company’s founder, Yeo Zhi Wei, was previously associated with venture-capital firms Singtel Innov8 Pte. Ltd. and Venture Consulting Pty. Ltd., the source reported.

Spaceship joins valet-storage provider Vault Dragon in the Singapore market. Also a recent startup, Vault Dragon secured more than $90,000 in seed funding and also offers services in Hong Kong.

Spaceship will also compete with approximately 20 traditional self-storage facilities in Singapore that offer a collective 1.5 million square feet of leasable space. The storage market has grown 28 percent during the last two or three years, with many operators nearly at full occupancy, the source reported.

Spaceship plans to differentiate from its competitors by targeting small businesses as well as accepting odd-sized and bulky items, Rohit Mulani, head of sales and marketing, told the source. All items are stored by the bin or individually in a secure warehouse, according to the company website. Bin drop-off and collection is free, but customers must pay to have bins returned to their specified location.

One of Spaceship’s early corporate clients is Eugene Perma, a European cosmetics firm, according to the source.

Spaceship expects its current funding to enable the company to operate for nine months. It has a goal of acquiring 5,000 customers in its first six months, and will likely seek Series-A investment sometime in the future, according to the source.

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