Services marketplace ServisHero raises $2.7m, launches in Thailand

Home and office services marketplace ServisHero announced today it closed a US$2.7 million pre-series A funding to conquer Southeast Asia. The round was led by Golden Gate Ventures, with participation from Cradle Seed Ventures.

Described as an Uber for local services, the app debuts in Thailand today – its third market after Malaysia and Singapore.

The app connects service professionals and small businesses to their customers.

ServisHero essentially allows its users to search, get quotes from, and book local home service providers, say a plumber, cleaner, or a repairman. Service providers pay the company a fee for every lead.

Co-founder and CEO Karl Loo says the company was born out of his frustrations after he looked in vain for a person to repair his air conditioner in Malaysia. While the country has high internet and smartphone usage, people are still using very traditional means such as classifieds or signboards plastered on power poles to source service providers.

So along with Paul Copplestone and Jason Kang, Karl built ServisHero to connect individual professionals and small businesses to their customers. The team launched the app in Kuala Lumpur in June last year.

The pre-series A investment builds on an exceptional year for ServisHero. The company says it saw a rapidly growing roster of service providers and customers last year. It claims to have signed up close to 3,000 service professionals and registered 50,000 downloads, though it refuses to say how many of those are being actively used.

An important market

ServisHero chose to launch in Thailand next because the nation experiences similar problems to Malaysia. Karl explains that Thailand’s local services industry is fragmented, and service professionals are not easily discoverable online and are used to traditional forms of advertising.

Plus, he believes Thailand’s mobile-savvy population is ready for an app like ServisHero.

“Our entry into Thailand is well-timed with its rapidly increasing demand for solutions that extend beyond the traditional directory,” he says.

ServisHero will use the money it just raised to gain momentum in Thailand as well as expand to other countries in Southeast Asia.