RFID tech company Entigral closes on first outside funding

 Entigral Systems, Inc., a company that helps global companies track inventory and assets using RFID technologies, has closed the first $500,000 of a projected $1.2 million series A round of financing.

“This investment allows Entigral to hire software developers and sales personnel,” said J. Booth Kalmbach, Jr., president and CEO of Entigral Systems, Inc. “You will hear a lot from Entigral in the ensuing months.”

Entigral closed on more than $500,000 from four angel syndicates, all from North Carolina, according to a statement released by the company today. The company expects to close the second tranche of financing in 2014.

Leading the round was a group of investors from Piedmont Angel Network (PAN); the financing also included IMAF-Cape Fear, IMAF-RTP, and Triangle Angel Partners (TAP). Tom Storrs, a lead investor from PAN, will join Entigral’s Board of Directors.

This is the first outside capital that Entigral has raised, said Kalmbach, who started planning the fundraising process with L. Allen Bennett, chairman, founder and vice president of sales, in early 2011. The second part of the Series A financing is expected to close in 2014, said Kalmbach.

“Raising the first outside capital is always arduous,” said Kalmbach, “no exception here.” The company began actively fundraising in August 2012, said Kalmbach, but didn’t receive a term sheet until March.

“A series A investment,” said Kalmbach, “has been hard to raise in our neck of the woods.” This is changing, however, said Kalmbach, with the help of angel groups.

“Angel groups have become a critical enabler,” said Kalmbach, that “now can source capital in amounts approaching VC.”

According to Kalmbach, the company competes in the large enterprise software market for manufacturing and logistics execution. The company has always been cash-flow positive, said Kalmbach, though Bennett and Kalmbach did finance product development and sales, investing close to $2 million of their own money in the company.

“At this point, growth demands we exceed our ability to finance internally,” said Kalmbach, who went on to mention that it is now time to “hit the gas.”