As customer support moves beyond traditional email and ticketing systems to platforms like Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Discord, businesses are struggling to manage conversations across multiple channels. UK-based startup Plain believes it has the solution.
Plain’s API-first platform consolidates customer support interactions from various communication tools, allowing businesses to manage and streamline their customer service operations from a single interface. By integrating with Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord, and traditional email and chat systems, Plain ensures that companies can engage with their customers wherever they are—without losing track of conversations.
CEO Simon Rohrbach explains that as companies increasingly use platforms like Slack to engage with customers, managing multiple support channels has become overwhelming. Slack alone can host hundreds of different channels, making it difficult to track, organize, and respond efficiently. Plain simplifies this by centralizing all customer interactions, ensuring support teams can work more effectively without bouncing between different platforms.
The platform not only facilitates communication but also offers powerful support functionalities similar to those found in tools like Zendesk and Intercom. With built-in support for essential metrics such as SLA tracking and response times, Plain provides businesses with deeper insights into their customer service performance. Rohrbach emphasizes that speed and ease of use are key to the platform’s appeal, as customers appreciate a fast and intuitive solution that enhances collaboration across teams.
Beyond streamlining customer interactions, Plain also enables closer collaboration between support, customer success, and engineering teams. The shift from isolated support teams to a more integrated approach allows businesses to resolve customer issues faster and improve overall satisfaction.
Investors see strong potential in Plain’s approach, which has now secured $15 million in a Series A funding round led by Battery Ventures, with continued backing from Index Ventures and Connect Ventures. The fresh capital will be used to expand operations and establish the company’s first U.S. office in San Francisco, positioning Plain for broader adoption among businesses in North America.
Plain was founded by Simon Rohrbach and Matt Vagni, both of whom played key roles in shaping Deliveroo’s growth. Rohrbach previously led Deliveroo’s 40-person content, research, and design team, while Vagni focused on design systems and internal tooling. Their experience in scaling operations and optimizing workflows has directly influenced Plain’s product vision, making it a valuable tool for businesses looking to enhance customer support.
Several notable companies have already adopted Plain, including Sanity, Laravel, Stytch, and Raycast. These businesses leverage the platform to simplify their support processes, reduce inefficiencies, and improve customer engagement.
Neeraj Agrawal, a general partner at Battery Ventures, believes Plain is at the forefront of a major shift in B2B support, describing it as an era of collaboration and AI-driven service. As customer service continues to evolve, companies are looking for more effective ways to manage interactions across multiple channels, and Plain is well-positioned to meet this demand.
However, Plain isn’t the only player in this space. U.S.-based startups Thena and Pylon are also working on solutions to aggregate customer support channels. Pylon recently raised $17 million in funding from investors such as Andreessen Horowitz and General Catalyst, and it now serves over 250 customers. Meanwhile, Thena has raised more than $7 million with backing from Lightspeed and First Round Capital.
Despite competition, Plain’s unique approach to simplifying cross-channel support and fostering internal collaboration gives it an edge in a growing market. As businesses continue to shift toward integrated support solutions, Plain’s ability to unify customer interactions in a single, user-friendly platform makes it a compelling option for companies looking to improve efficiency and responsiveness.
With a fresh round of funding, experienced leadership, and a growing customer base, Plain is well on its way to becoming a key player in the evolution of B2B customer support.
