Kyle Hill and Mike Townsend launched HomeHero in 2014 to ensure that our elderly loved ones can age with the in-home care they need.
Only a year and a half in, more than 1,500 Heroes, HomeHero caregivers, have provided 1 million hours of care to seniors in Los Angeles and the broader San Diego area.
Today, the team’s announcing a $20 million Series A “to take what’s working in LA and bring it to other markets,” COO & Co-Founder Mike Townsend shared.
HomeHero is also focused on growing their current team of 18. Joe Nigro, the former East Coast General Manager of Handy, is the most recent addition joining as HomeHero’s Head of Growth.
Graham Holdings led the round with participation from The Launch Fund, Social+Capital Partnership, and Tencent Holdings Limited. HomeHero’s Series A brings the team’s total funding to $23 million.
Social + Capital Partnership and The Launch Fund participated in the team’s seed round last year.
“If anyone at any company can see growth it’s Chamath…Strategically the team at Social + Capital Partnership has been really helpful for us to position the company. To have them on again in this next round is really special,” Mike commented on S23P’s continued support.
Those caring for elderly family members are familiar with the reality of senior care.
Despite caregiving being the fastest growing career in America, the market is fragmented with caregivers processing their time-sheets in the mail, being paid 21 days later, and lacking a platform to showcase their skills.
HomeHero’s marketplace solves this by enabling families to find, hire and manage caregivers online and through a mobile app.
Each caregiver has a unique video profile highlighting their certifications, skills and social references. HomeHero also provides scheduling and payment tools.
According to HomeHero’s press release, the population of Americans over the age of 65 is expected to be 84 million by 2050.
“There is a huge baby boomer generation and it’s going to be very difficult for us as a country to satisfy the needs of those seniors as they become of age where they need some caregiving,” Mike shared.
We first featured Kyle and Mike on 33voices last October when their ultimate goal was to own the Los Angeles market.
Today, they’re operating in over 36 cities across Southern California, including eight in San Diego. The team plans to expand to The Bay Area in the coming weeks.
HomeHero has a deep penetration strategy for each city they enter. Echoing Chamath Palihapitiya’s insight that “immense discipline” is among the most telling traits of successful founders Kyle and Mike are committed to city-by-city expansion, despite temptations to grow faster and wider.
You don’t want a base hit in another market. You want a home run.
“Geographic expansion strategy is really important, particularly in rejecting the notion that you’re going to make exceptions based on relationships you have,” he shared.
Although the team’s motivated by their Series A and the 1 million hours milestone, Mike assured me that they’re ready to get to work.
I want to make an impact across the world. If we do this successfully, we’ll be in many countries in the next few years. We have all the potential in the world to do that.
To learn more about HomeHero’s Series A tune into Mike’s episode of 33founders.
Here’s a glimpse of what we discuss:
- Milestones leading up to HomeHero’s Series A
- How to grow a marketplace
- Why transparency is the foundation of HomeHero’s culture
- How to facilitate cross-functional collaboration on your team