Neighbor Inc., a Salt Lake City-based peer-to-peer self-storage marketplace, has raised $2.5 million in seed funding from Utah-based venture-capital firms Peak Ventures and Pelion Venture Partners. The company will use the money to launch a proprietary “store with a friend” feature that will connect to the Facebook profiles of Neighbor users to help hosts advertise storage space on social media, according to a press release.

"We've spent the last year creating a stellar product and building a strong local network of renters and hosts here in Utah,” said Joseph Woodbury, CEO of Neighbor. “Now we're ready to take this funding and focus on building even more of Neighbor's self-storage communities across the U.S."

Similar to other shared-economy networks, Neighbor provides an online platform where people in need of storage can find local hosts willing to rent available space. Hosts can set their own prices for room in their home or garage. Neighbor charges a 15 percent service fee on top of the host’s asking price. It also receives a processing fee of 3.34 percent, plus 30 cents, per payment, according to the company website.

"When we saw what Neighbor was doing, we were blown away by the potential," said Chad Packard, an investor at Pelion Ventures. "The concept is simple and straightforward; the market potential is incredibly high; and the team is whip-smart. We knew really quickly that we wanted to work with them."

"Neighbor is solving two of the most important consumer pain points in this industry—price and convenience," added John Mayfield, an investor at Peak Ventures. "Not only does Neighbor have an attractive business model, it also gives consumers an attractive alternative to industrial storage units. We're excited to see how this company changes the self-storage paradigm."

Founded in 2017, Neighbor primarily offers peer-to-peer storage in Utah, though it’s platform invites hosts to connect with storage seekers anywhere in the nation, according to its website.

Source:
PR Newswire, Neighbor Lands $2.5M Seed Funding to Bring Shared Self-Storage to the Neighborhood