Material Bank
Material Bank is a technology and logistics company that helps architecture and design professionals search for and order material samples.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Material Bank is an American technology and logistics company serving architects, interior designers, product specifiers, and manufacturers of architectural and design materials. Its core service is a digital platform through which professionals can search for products and request physical samples, while participating manufacturers use the platform to present their materials to a specialized trade audience. The company’s logistics model is designed to consolidate sample orders and deliver them rapidly, making the process of evaluating finishes, surfaces, textiles, flooring, wall coverings, hardware, and related products more efficient than contacting many manufacturers separately. The business was founded in January 2019 by Adam I. Sandow, whose broader Sandow business includes media and information properties serving the architecture, interiors, and design industries. Sandow’s existing relationships with design professionals and product companies helped attract both sides of the marketplace: designers seeking material information and manufacturers seeking a more effective way to reach specifiers. Material Bank was established around the idea that product discovery and physical sample fulfillment could be integrated into one technology-enabled service. Its operations combine a searchable online interface with a large-scale warehouse and distribution system. Material Bank initially operated an approximately 80,000-square-foot facility in Memphis, Tennessee. In February 2021, it moved operations to a substantially larger logistics facility in Olive Branch, Mississippi, near the FedEx Express World Hub at Memphis International Airport. The facility was reported to cover approximately 380,000 square feet and to support rapid shipment of orders placed by customers in the United States and Canada. The company stated that orders placed by midnight Eastern Time could be delivered by 10:30 a.m. the next day through Priority Overnight service. The warehouse used autonomous robots supplied by Locus Robotics alongside human employees. Material Bank expanded beyond sample search and delivery through acquisitions. In August 2021, it acquired full ownership of Clippings, an interior-design procurement platform with offices in London and Sofia; Clippings continued to operate as a separate platform. Material Bank also opened a facility near Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, extending its logistics presence into Europe. In March 2022, it acquired Amber Engine, a software company focused on product information management. In June 2022, it acquired Architizer, an online forum and media platform for architects and designers. These transactions broadened the company’s position from a sample-ordering service toward a larger ecosystem connecting material manufacturers, product data, procurement, and design-industry media. The company financed this expansion through venture and growth-capital rounds. Reported investors included Raine Ventures, Starwood Capital Group, Bain Capital Ventures, General Catalyst, and Durable Capital Partners. A May 2022 Series D round brought reported cumulative funding above $325 million and placed the company’s reported valuation above $1.9 billion. Material Bank is not identified in the supplied reference material as a publicly listed company. Its principal identity remains that of a business-to-business platform combining digital product discovery with physical sample logistics for the built-environment and design sectors.
History
Material Bank was founded in January 2019 by Adam I. Sandow. The company emerged from Sandow’s wider portfolio of architecture, interior-design, and design-media businesses, including Interior Design and Metropolis. Those relationships gave the new venture access to manufacturers and professional users in a specialized market. Its founding proposition was to simplify a fragmented process: architects and designers could search for materials online and request samples through a single platform, while manufacturers could distribute samples and product information to potential specifiers. Before April 2020, Material Bank had raised $27 million through earlier financing rounds led by Raine Ventures and Starwood Capital Group. In April 2020, it secured a further $28 million in Series B financing led by Bain Capital Ventures. The company said the proceeds would be used to develop logistics infrastructure and improve its digital platform. This funding supported the expansion of a business model that depended not only on software but also on inventory handling, sample consolidation, and time-sensitive delivery. Material Bank initially operated from an approximately 80,000-square-foot facility in Memphis, Tennessee. In February 2021, it moved to a larger warehouse in Olive Branch, Mississippi. The facility was located near the Memphis International Airport and the FedEx Express World Hub, allowing the company to use overnight shipping infrastructure. The reported Olive Branch site measured approximately 380,000 square feet. Material Bank stated that it could deliver orders to the United States and Canada by Priority Overnight when orders were placed by midnight Eastern Time, with delivery targeted for the following morning. Its warehouse operations combined more than 200 employees with approximately 150 autonomous robots supplied by Locus Robotics. The company’s geographic and service ambitions grew during 2021 and 2022. In August 2021, Material Bank acquired full ownership of Clippings, an interior-design procurement platform with offices in London and Sofia. Clippings remained a separate platform rather than being fully absorbed into Material Bank’s principal sample service. Material Bank also opened a logistics facility near Paris’s Charles de Gaulle Airport, providing a European base for its operations. In March 2022, Material Bank acquired Amber Engine, a software company focused on product information management. This transaction added capabilities for organizing and distributing detailed product data, an important function for manufacturers and professional specifiers. In June 2022, the company acquired Architizer, an online forum and information platform for architects and designers. Together, the acquisitions extended Material Bank’s reach across procurement, product data, professional networking, and design-industry media. Material Bank’s expansion was financed through successive venture-capital and growth-equity rounds. In May 2021, a Series C round co-led by General Catalyst and Durable Capital Partners raised more than $100 million, with participation from Bain Capital Ventures and Raine Ventures. The round brought reported cumulative funding to $157 million and was associated with a reported valuation of $1 billion. In May 2022, the company announced a $175 million Series D financing, taking reported total funding above $325 million and placing its reported valuation above $1.9 billion. The supplied reference material does not identify Material Bank as a publicly traded company or provide a later ownership change. Its documented business remains centered on connecting design professionals and material brands through digital discovery, physical sample logistics, procurement, and related product-information services.
- 2022
Amber Engine acquisition
[1]The acquisition added product information management software capabilities to Material Bank’s portfolio.
- 2022
Series D financing
[1]Material Bank announced a $175 million Series D round, taking reported cumulative funding above $325 million and its reported valuation above $1.9 billion.
- 2022
Architizer acquisition
[1]Material Bank acquired Architizer, broadening its portfolio into architecture and design community services.
- 2021
Olive Branch logistics facility opens
[1]Material Bank moved from its Memphis facility to a substantially larger warehouse in Olive Branch, Mississippi.
- 2021
Series C round and billion-dollar valuation
[1]General Catalyst and Durable Capital Partners co-led a financing round that raised more than $100 million and was associated with a reported $1 billion valuation.
- 2021
Clippings acquisition and European expansion
[1]Material Bank acquired Clippings and opened a logistics facility near Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris.
- 2020
Series B financing
[1]A $28 million Series B round led by Bain Capital Ventures brought reported cumulative funding to $55 million and supported logistics and platform development.
- 2019
Material Bank is founded
[1]Adam I. Sandow founded Material Bank in January as a platform for connecting material manufacturers with architects and designers and coordinating rapid sample delivery.
Products and positioning
A technology-enabled sample marketplace and logistics network for architects, designers, specifiers, and material manufacturers.
Digital material marketplace and sample logistics · 2019
Material Bank platform
The core Material Bank service is an online search and ordering platform for architectural, construction, interior, and design materials. Professional users can investigate products and request physical samples, while manufacturers use the service to make materials discoverable and fulfill sample requests. The platform is differentiated by its integration with centralized warehousing and rapid shipping rather than functioning solely as a catalog or media site.
Interior-design procurement
Clippings
Clippings is an interior-design procurement platform acquired by Material Bank in 2021. It has offices in London and Sofia and continued to operate as a separate platform after the acquisition. Its inclusion in the portfolio expanded Material Bank’s role from sample discovery and delivery toward sourcing and procurement support for interior-design professionals.
Product information management software
Amber Engine
Amber Engine is a product information management software business acquired by Material Bank in 2022. Its capabilities support the organization and distribution of product specifications and related information, complementing Material Bank’s marketplace and helping manufacturers manage the data used by design professionals during research and specification.
Architecture and design community platform
Architizer
Architizer is an online forum and information platform for architects and designers. Material Bank acquired it in 2022, adding a design-community and professional-information property to a portfolio otherwise centered on samples, procurement, logistics, and product data.
Brand decisions
2022
Add product-data and design-community capabilitiesM&ABackground
Material Bank’s platform expansion increasingly covered functions adjacent to sample ordering, including product information and professional design content.
Action taken
The company acquired Amber Engine in March for product information management capabilities and Architizer in June for its architecture and design community platform.
Aftermath
The acquisitions broadened the company’s portfolio beyond logistics into product data, procurement, and professional design media.
2022
Fund continued platform expansionStrategyBackground
Material Bank pursued additional acquisitions and infrastructure expansion in the design and architectural-services market.
Action taken
The company announced a $175 million Series D financing round.
Aftermath
Reported cumulative funding exceeded $325 million and the reported valuation exceeded $1.9 billion.
Series D financing and reported valuation. $157 million reported cumulative funding and a reported $1 billion valuation → More than $325 million reported cumulative funding and a reported valuation above $1.9 billion (May 2022)
2021
Scale centralized fulfillmentStrategyBackground
The company needed more capacity to consolidate samples and support overnight delivery across the United States and Canada.
Action taken
Material Bank relocated operations to an approximately 380,000-square-foot logistics facility in Olive Branch, Mississippi, near the Memphis air-freight hub.
Aftermath
The larger site supported expanded warehouse operations and the use of autonomous robots alongside employees.
2021
Acquire Clippings and expand into EuropeM&ABackground
Material Bank sought to broaden its role in the design supply chain and establish a stronger presence outside North America.
Action taken
The company acquired full ownership of Clippings and opened a facility near Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris.
Aftermath
Clippings remained a separate platform, while the Paris facility extended Material Bank’s logistics footprint into Europe.
2020
Invest in logistics and platform infrastructureStrategyBackground
Material Bank’s model depended on both digital product discovery and rapid physical sample delivery. After raising Series B funding, the company identified warehouse capacity and online-platform improvements as priorities.
Action taken
The company directed the financing toward developing a larger logistics facility and improving its digital platform.
Aftermath
Material Bank subsequently moved from its original Memphis facility to a much larger Olive Branch, Mississippi, operation.
Series B financing. $27 million reported cumulative funding → $55 million reported cumulative funding (April 2020)
Recent events
- 2022
Material Bank acquires Amber Engine[1]
M&A
The company acquired Amber Engine, a software business specializing in product information management, adding product-data capabilities to its design-industry platform.
- 2022
Material Bank announces Series D funding[1]
Other
Material Bank announced a $175 million Series D round. Reported cumulative funding exceeded $325 million and the company was valued at more than $1.9 billion at the time.
- 2022
Material Bank acquires Architizer[1]
M&A
Material Bank acquired Architizer, an online forum and platform for architects and designers, expanding its presence in design-industry information and community services.
- 2021
Material Bank moves to a larger Mississippi logistics facility[1]
Other
The company moved from its original Memphis warehouse to a larger facility in Olive Branch, Mississippi, improving its capacity to consolidate and distribute material samples.
- 2021
Material Bank completes Series C financing[1]
Other
A Series C round co-led by General Catalyst and Durable Capital Partners raised more than $100 million. Existing investors Bain Capital Ventures and Raine Ventures also participated, and the company’s reported valuation reached $1 billion.
- 2021
Material Bank acquires Clippings[1]
M&A
Material Bank acquired full ownership of Clippings, an interior-design procurement platform operating from London and Sofia. Clippings continued as a separate platform.
- 2020
Material Bank raises Series B funding[1]
Other
Material Bank raised $28 million in a Series B round led by Bain Capital Ventures. The financing was intended to support a new logistics facility and improvements to the company’s online platform, bringing reported total funding to $55 million.
Sources4 sources
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