Service.com recently executed a move from downtown Detroit to Farmington Hills, setting the stage for what the tech firm expects will be exponential growth.
The 2-year-old startup, formerly known as Locqus, is working on a digital platform that streamlines the finding, hiring and paying of contractors. Think of it as a startup that is working to eliminate some of the biggest headaches that come with home improvements.
"We're trying to be the Uber and Paypal for the service industry," says Sandy Kronenberg, CEO of
Service.com.
Service.com got its start in downtown Detroit as Locqus. Back then Kronenberg was trying to build its mobile app, Field Manage, into a platform that handles the back end needs of small businesses and contractors, such as managing time clocks, scheduling, inventory, etc. Kronenberg got some modest growth out of it but nothing to write home about.
"It just wasn’t growing any more than a lifestyle business," Kronenberg says. "It wasn't going to knock your socks off."
So he decided to pivot the business model to its current form and rebrand the firm to Service.com. At the time his team was co-working out of the Bizdom space in downtown Detroit. When that startup accelerator shut down late last year, Kronenberg needed to find a new home for his company. Downtown Detroit had become too expensive and inconvenient to set up shop for his firm, so he made the move to better offices in Farmington Hills earlier this month that will give his company room for future growth.
Service.com is currently testing its platform in Columbus, Ohio. Kronenberg and his team of 20 people (including half a dozen new hires over the last year) hope to launch in more markets, including Detroit, early this year. He has raised $3.5 million in a seed round to make it happen and is looking to raise a Series A later this year.
Source: Sandy Kronenberg, CEO of Service.com
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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