It’s no secret that every inch of additional square footage is a luxury in metro Vancouver. With rental rates increasing and square footage dwindling, residents – and businesses – are forced to find creative solutions to make city living possible. Enter Second Closet. Second Closet is a Toronto-based startup that aims to alleviate some of the urban space burden by offering a convenient and affordable storage option. The service is built on convenience; they cover everything from pick-up, storing, and returning your belongings. The height of convenience begs the question of affordability, which is where their model truly excels beyond the rest. Unlike most storage solutions, rather than paying for an entire locker and using only half of the space, Second Closet stores your belongings in a warehouse, so you only pay for the space you actually use.
Real estate and traditional tech companies share few similarities in terms of growth and cost optimization. With early investors Michael Hyatt, an active mentor and investor in numerous tech startups, and Mike Cowie, Executive Vice President of Colliers International, the company is well positioned to amalgamate the two sectors. In an interview with The Globe and Mail, CEO Mark Ang estimated that “Second Closet has worked with about 3,000 customers in the Greater Toronto Area so far, accruing monthly revenue in the lower hundreds of thousands.”
The startup raised $2.04M in September 2018 and has used the funding to expand to Vancouver. Now fully operational, residents and companies in their service area (outlined on their website) can schedule their appointment to declutter and take back every inch of functional space in their home or office – just in time for spring cleaning!
Visit their website: https://www.secondcloset.com/
Original Globe and Mail article: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/article-toronto-startup-second-closet-aims-to-uber-ize-self-storage/
Photos via Second Closet and The Globe and Mail.
