We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Erik Mesikäpp a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Erik, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

It all started during a simple conversation about how hard it was to order bulk materials. Everyone was used to ordering food, groceries and even furniture online – but if you wanted gravel or mulch, you had to call around, wait for quotes and hope someone showed up. It just didn’t make sense.

Before Ayren, we had already built Isekallur – Europe’s first dump truck e-commerce marketplace. That experience showed us how much opportunity there was in bringing transparency and simplicity to this space. When we saw the same challenges in the U.S., we knew we could take everything we’d learned and build something even better – that became Ayren Inc, and the platform known today as Aggregate Markets.

We started researching the market – who sells, who delivers, how pricing works, and why there wasn’t already an easy online option. We quickly realized the problem wasn’t simply lack of demand – it was complexity on the supplier side. Every material yard had its own pricing, delivery zones, trucks and payment processes. That’s when we knew the solution had to connect both sides – customers and suppliers – in one streamlined platform.

We built a rough prototype for US market. When the first few real orders came in, we handled them manually – calling suppliers, confirming deliveries and tracking trucks ourselves. It was chaotic – but it showed real traction.

Over the last years, we have focused on automation – turning those manual steps into a seamless online flow. We built supplier dashboards, delivery tracking, payment integration – step by step. Each small win made the system smoother and more scalable.

By the time we launched publicly, we had a network of trusted suppliers across multiple states and a platform that worked like DoorDash – but for bulk materials. What began as a small frustration turned into a team-driven mission to modernize how materials move – connecting homeowners, contractors and suppliers nationwide through one simple, powerful marketplace.

Erik, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

We’re the team behind Ayren Inc, the company that built Aggregate Markets – a platform that makes ordering bulk materials like gravel, sand and mulch as easy as ordering dinner online.

Our journey started years ago with Isekallur, Europe’s first dump truck e-commerce marketplace. Back then, we were focused on solving a simple but widespread problem – how to connect people who need materials with the trucks and suppliers who can deliver them. What we discovered was a massive, global industry still running on phone calls, paper quotes and manual scheduling. That experience became the foundation for what we’re doing now in the U.S. with Ayren Inc.

At Aggregate Markets, we help homeowners, landscapers and contractors order bulk materials directly online from local suppliers – with transparent pricing, instant delivery options and live order tracking. On the other side, we help material yards and trucking companies automate their sales, dispatch and logistics through modern software tools. The result is a win-win system that saves time, reduces costs and improves efficiency for everyone involved.

What sets us apart is our hands-on approach. We didn’t just build a marketplace – we spent years inside the problem. We’ve personally worked with material yards, dispatchers and drivers to understand their real pain points. Every feature we’ve developed – from automated quotes to supplier dashboards – came from real-world experience and feedback from the people using it every day.

We’re proud to be helping small, local businesses modernize without losing their personal touch. Many of our partners have been in the industry for decades – family-run material yards, independent truckers, local contractors – and now they’re competing online, reaching new customers and running more efficiently through Aggregate Markets. That’s the impact that drives us.

At the end of the day, we see ourselves as builders – not just of technology, but of connections. Our mission is to make the movement of materials simple, transparent and sustainable. Whether someone needs a few yards of mulch or 100 tons of gravel, we make it possible with a few clicks.

We want people to know that this isn’t just another tech startup – it’s a team of people who genuinely care about modernizing an essential industry that builds our roads, homes and communities. Aggregate Markets is where innovation meets practicality – and we’re just getting started.

We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.

I met Silvar in first grade – we grew up together and have been building things side by side ever since. Years later, while running Isekallur, Europe’s first dump truck e-commerce marketplace, one of our drivers got sick and I decided to take the delivery myself.

On that job, in a small village in Estonia, I met Chris, an American project manager working on a local site. We started talking about how hard it was to order and coordinate materials – the exact problem we were trying to solve. That random meeting turned into a lasting partnership.

We’d really appreciate if you could talk to us about how you figured out the manufacturing process.

We don’t manufacture anything ourselves – we work with local suppliers who do. Every state has its own standards and quirks. Sand in Florida isn’t the same as sand in Arizona – the grain size, the moisture, even the way it’s loaded is different. The same goes for mulch, soil and gravel. So the challenge wasn’t making the materials – it was finding the right partners who actually deliver good quality and service.

Early on, we learned that not every vendor fits. Some have great material but poor communication – others deliver fast but cut corners on accuracy or quality. We had to build real relationships, visit yards, test deliveries and learn who we could rely on. Over time, we built a network of trusted suppliers who care about their work and understand what “on time and as ordered” really means.

The biggest lesson – tech can’t fix bad partnerships. You can build all the software in the world, but if the people behind the trucks don’t care, then they are not a match for us. So we choose vendors carefully – not just based on price, but consistency, honesty and how they handle problems when they happen. That’s what keeps customers coming back.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://aggregatemarkets.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aggregatemarkets
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AggregateMarketsUSA
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erik-mesikapp/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AggregateMarkets