MyPorter, a valet storage startup based in Atlanta, announces that it has closed an investment round of $2.2 million to drive accelerated market share gains in the Atlanta market and prepare for expansion into new markets in Q1 2020.  The investment was led by a series of angels and CEOs with expertise in essential services, finance, real estate and technology, including Wes Matelich, CEO of Rx Green Technologies and Ken Haines, CEO of Atlanta-based The Wrench Group (Coolray, Mr. Plumber and BriteBox).

MyPorter launched its concierge storage services in Atlanta and the surrounding metro areas in 2015 to disrupt the antiquated $38 billion self-storage industry. Expecting to exceed more than 10,000 customer jobs this year, the company offers consumers and a growing portfolio of businesses a more convenient, faster and more reliable way to store their belongings.  By bringing the entire process online and on-demand, MyPorter’s platform enables customers to schedule their pickup, maintain a visual catalog of stored items and schedule delivery directly to their home or business.

“I saw a unique opportunity with MyPorter to upset an essential services industry that would have a lasting impact locally and potentially nationally as well,” states Ken Haines. “It’s exciting to be an early investor in a company disrupting a decades-old industry in a ‘make or break’ market like Atlanta.”

After formation in April 2015, MyPorter remained in beta stage until mid-2016 when co-CEOs John Foshee and Robert Crump joined the team. Throughout 2017, the company was funded with the CEOs’ personal capital, with Foshee and Crump literally also putting their sweat equity in the business as the company’s early movers and drivers. The first major outside capital came in January 2018.

“I’ve known Rob since college and can see the confidence he and John have in this company, leaving lucrative careers in private equity and consulting to change the face of an established, but antiquated industry,” explains Wes Matelich. “They see enormous potential, as do I, to bridge the moving and self-storage industries while bringing the customer experience online for a more on-demand user experience.  They have already proven the viability of this on-demand service for both consumers and businesses over the past several years and I am excited to help continue the expansion in Atlanta and beyond.”

“Robert and I eschewed the traditional institutional funding sources when we started out because we wanted to truly understand the basic mechanics of the business and build the company from the ground up in order to ensure we started from a solid foundation from which to drive sustainable growth for the business model that we envisioned,” explains Foshee. “Choosing this path has allowed us to create a model that is extremely scalable and investor friendly. We’re excited about the high caliber of investors we’ve engaged up to this point and look forward to our Southeast expansion while we pursue our Series A.”