The “Uber for cleaning” startup Exec has been acquired by Handybook. According to the New York Times, the deal will see Exec continue to operate as normal and will give Handybook its much-desired foothold in the San Francisco Bay area to expand its presence. Exec CEO Justin Kan confirmed the deal with us in an email, saying that he’ll stay on as an advisor, but is no longer “day-to-day” with the company.
Oisin Hanrahan, Handybook’s CEO and co-founder, said in a statement that the agreement will further his company’s offering of “high-quality home improvement and cleaning services to consumers nationwide.” Indeed, already in 13 markets, the ownership of the Y Combinator alumnus will give Hanrahan an opportunity to accelerate expansion into a huge California market, where Exec serves the state’s four largest cities.
Kan says that he decided to sell to Handybook because it offered the strongest potential to “disrupt” the home service industry. Kan’s company mostly complements Handybook since it focuses specifically on home cleaning, while Handybook is like a professional handy-person at your disposal, dealing with home and office cleaning, maintenance, plumbing, electricity issues, and more.
Started by Kan, Exec originally aimed to be a competitor to the likes of TaskRabbit and Zaarly, ultimately trying to diversify its services by branching out into home cleaning. However, it wound up shifting its business and abandoning its on-demand errand service to focus entirely on cleaning. The company currently operates in San Francisco, Seattle, San Diego, Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Chicago, and Washington, DC.
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Exec raised $3.3 million in funding from CrunchFund, SV Angel, Reddit’s Alexis Ohanian, and other investors.
Photo credit: John Moore/Getty Images
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