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Kiki raises US$6 million in seed capital for New York launch
5 September 2023
Kiki, a sub-letting start-up formulated by its founder while studying at the University of Auckland, has gone on to raise US$6 million in seed capital. CEO Toby Thomas-Smith is beyond ecstatic with the result that enables the first big step in his master plan to “change how the world lives”.
Blackbird Ventures showed their confidence in Kiki when they led the funding round with US$4.5 million, which was followed by an impressive line-up of backers that included (in no particular order) Facebook Marketplace founder Bowen Pan, former Airbnb exec Harry Uffindell; ex-Uber execs Tyler Trerotola and Jaikumar Ganesh, former Bumble exec Michelle Battersby, former Canva exec and founder of Phase One Ventures Mahesh Muralidhar plus others.
With plans to become the world’s biggest community-led marketplace, Kiki is aimed at connecting everyday people who don’t want to lose money on rent while away with those people that need a short-term rental of 6 months or less. “It’s more about connecting people rather than listing properties.” believes Toby. Modelled on dating app features, Kiki matches people based on their compatibility criteria and leverages social media as a form of authenticity check. Toby wants users to feel comfortable with who they are sharing their home with while away. Kiki also works on an invite-only model, and Toby hopes this feature helps “keep the weirdos out”.
It was while experiencing the rental market as a student and working cleaning toilets for an Airbnb that Toby saw two problems collide and a solution emerge. The problems were that the traditional 12-month tenancy agreements were too long for university students, while the occupancy in the Airbnb was very seasonal and charged a premium for very short-term stays only paid by holidaymakers. Leaving a vacant space in the middle from which Kiki (then EasyRent) could occupy. Toby worked through iterations of his idea while finishing his Bachelor of Commerce. He had support to further enhance his entrepreneurial skills and knowledge through free co-curricular programmes on offer through the Business School’s Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE), such as Summer Lab and Velocity.
During the early days of the start-up journey, Toby became almost a permanent resident in CIE’s co-working space, a facility provided for any University of Auckland student or staff involved in the Start-up Studio programme. Toby says “I wouldn’t be here without CIE and Unleash Space.”
CIE’s programme also provides advice and connections with New Zealand’s wider entrepreneurial ecosystem. It was at Start-up Studio that Toby met his mentor, Mahesh Muralidhar, who has been a huge support to Toby in his journey as he navigated the ups and downs. Toby says, “When I broke the news to Mahesh about our seed raise, he was literally crying.”
Toby encountered several speed bumps while trying to ignite his venture, and the business has evolved and pivoted a few times to become more of a match-making service. At first, the focus was on solving a problem for students and by the end of 2021 EasyRent had matched 69 people with accommodation in the New Zealand market. Looking for growth, Toby relocated to Sydney, Australia, where he saw his start-up quickly flourish. “EasyRent filled 1,500 homes in Bondi Beach and neighbouring suburbs alone with the user profile shifting away from students to Irish and English expats in their 30s.” It was at this point that Toby decided to go for broke and go all-in on the New York market. “We can’t change how the world lives without winning America.”
Describing the foray into the New York property market as a “social experiment,” the gamble has paid off big time. Toby’s advice to future entrepreneurs is to “believe in yourself and keep focusing on the problem you are trying to solve. Build a ‘need’ not a ‘want’ business and listen to as much feedback and market validation as you can”.
Follow Kiki on Instagram:Kikiclub.nyc
Toby Thomas-Smith was a regular face in the CIE Unleash Space, working many hours on his venture.
5 September 2023
Kiki, a sub-letting start-up formulated by its founder while studying at the University of Auckland, has gone on to raise US$6 million in seed capital. CEO Toby Thomas-Smith is beyond ecstatic with the result that enables the first big step in his master plan to “change how the world lives”.
Blackbird Ventures showed their confidence in Kiki when they led the funding round with US$4.5 million, which was followed by an impressive line-up of backers that included (in no particular order) Facebook Marketplace founder Bowen Pan, former Airbnb exec Harry Uffindell; ex-Uber execs Tyler Trerotola and Jaikumar Ganesh, former Bumble exec Michelle Battersby, former Canva exec and founder of Phase One Ventures Mahesh Muralidhar plus others.
With plans to become the world’s biggest community-led marketplace, Kiki is aimed at connecting everyday people who don’t want to lose money on rent while away with those people that need a short-term rental of 6 months or less. “It’s more about connecting people rather than listing properties.” believes Toby. Modelled on dating app features, Kiki matches people based on their compatibility criteria and leverages social media as a form of authenticity check. Toby wants users to feel comfortable with who they are sharing their home with while away. Kiki also works on an invite-only model, and Toby hopes this feature helps “keep the weirdos out”.
It was while experiencing the rental market as a student and working cleaning toilets for an Airbnb that Toby saw two problems collide and a solution emerge. The problems were that the traditional 12-month tenancy agreements were too long for university students, while the occupancy in the Airbnb was very seasonal and charged a premium for very short-term stays only paid by holidaymakers. Leaving a vacant space in the middle from which Kiki (then EasyRent) could occupy. Toby worked through iterations of his idea while finishing his Bachelor of Commerce. He had support to further enhance his entrepreneurial skills and knowledge through free co-curricular programmes on offer through the Business School’s Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE), such as Summer Lab and Velocity.
During the early days of the start-up journey, Toby became almost a permanent resident in CIE’s co-working space, a facility provided for any University of Auckland student or staff involved in the Start-up Studio programme. Toby says “I wouldn’t be here without CIE and Unleash Space.”
CIE’s programme also provides advice and connections with New Zealand’s wider entrepreneurial ecosystem. It was at Start-up Studio that Toby met his mentor, Mahesh Muralidhar, who has been a huge support to Toby in his journey as he navigated the ups and downs. Toby says, “When I broke the news to Mahesh about our seed raise, he was literally crying.”
Toby encountered several speed bumps while trying to ignite his venture, and the business has evolved and pivoted a few times to become more of a match-making service. At first, the focus was on solving a problem for students and by the end of 2021 EasyRent had matched 69 people with accommodation in the New Zealand market. Looking for growth, Toby relocated to Sydney, Australia, where he saw his start-up quickly flourish. “EasyRent filled 1,500 homes in Bondi Beach and neighbouring suburbs alone with the user profile shifting away from students to Irish and English expats in their 30s.” It was at this point that Toby decided to go for broke and go all-in on the New York market. “We can’t change how the world lives without winning America.”
Describing the foray into the New York property market as a “social experiment,” the gamble has paid off big time. Toby’s advice to future entrepreneurs is to “believe in yourself and keep focusing on the problem you are trying to solve. Build a ‘need’ not a ‘want’ business and listen to as much feedback and market validation as you can”.
Follow Kiki on Instagram:Kikiclub.nyc
Toby Thomas-Smith was a regular face in the CIE Unleash Space, working many hours on his venture.
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