Helpling, the parent company of Irish-founded on-demand cleaning firm Hassle. com, has secured €10 million in investment to enable it to introduce new services.
Hassle.com, which was co-founded by Co Kildare woman Jules Coleman in 2012, was acquired by German rival Helpling for €32 million in July 2015. Both Helpling and Hassle.com enable customers to book a local vetted cleaner online or via a smartphone app. The group currently operates in nine countries, including Ireland.
Helpling, which has raised a total of €67 million in funding since launching in early 2014, said the new financing came from existing investors, led by Asia-Pacific Internet Group (APACIG), a joint venture between Rocket and Qatari telecom major Ooredo. Other investors include Mangrove Capital Partners, Accel and Lakestar.
Helpling said more than 85 per cent of its business derived from long-term customers who require weekly or bi-weekly cleaning.
It introduced additional household services such as window cleaning, painting and furniture assembly across 20 cities in Germany this year, and now intends to roll out these services to other markets, including Ireland.
Profitability
“Our core business model is on a clear path to profitability within the next year. The additional investment is an important step towards positioning
Helping
as the hub for all home services, and to build an iconic consumer brand,” said Helpling co-founder
Benedikt Franke
.
Ms Coleman, who quit her career in managing consultancy and established Hassle.com after teaching herself to code, left the company in early 2016. She is now entrepreneur in residence at Index Ventures, as well as a venture partner at Ignite 100.
