Hello Alfred is ready to do Seattle’s laundry. And groceries. And cleaning.
The hospitality startup this week expanded its on-demand home help service to seven apartment buildings in the Seattle area. Hello Alfred also opened a local office and hired an area manager and operations specialists.
Seattle seems a natural fit for the company, given the city’s abundance of wealthy young professionals in luxury high-rises. As the name implies, the service acts like a virtual butler to take care of all the daily tasks you’d rather not do — taking care of your home, your pet, your travel plans. It can even help you throw a party.
The startup partners with property owners, who offer the service to their residents as a perk.
Two of the inaugural Seattle-area buildings are Alley24, in Amazon’s South Lake Union backyard, and Velo, which is near Google’s offices in Fremont. One-bedroom apartments in the two buildings go for around $2,000.
New York-based Hello Alfred said it’s not merely another gig economy app that connects consumers with freelance contractors. The startup’s home managers are full-time employees, which the company says is important to building long-term relationships with customers.
The expansion comes on the heels of a $40 million series B funding round last year. Hello Alfred currently operates in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Boston, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Dallas, Austin, Denver, Houston, and Washington, D.C.
The company recently hired Chris Haseman, former director of engineering at Uber, as its chief technology officer and launched an updated mobile app.
Hello Alfred is not to be confused with Stay Alfred, a Spokane, Wash. startup that rents out downtown apartments and turns them into short-term rentals.
