Stuf Raises $11 Million in Series A Funding

Katharine Lau

Stuf, a New York startup taking a new, innovative approach to the $48 billion self-storage market, has raised $11 million in Series A funding led by Altos Ventures and Ireland’s Allegion Ventures.

Also participating in the round were Wilshire Lane Capital and Harlem Capital, two Black-led firms that co-led seed funding for Stuf in 2020. Stuf has now raised a total of $12.8 million from investors in its quest to build self-storage facilities in unused and underutilized urban spaces, a market estimated at over 100 million square feet. Prior investors include ANIM Fund, Palm Tree Crew and Good Friends, a venture firm started by the founders of Warby Parker, Harry’s and Allbirds.

“This new round of funding is a major accomplishment and speaks to the strength of our team, business, industry sector and growth potential,” said co-founder and CEO Katharine Lau, who previously held senior positions at shared workspace developer Industrious and fitness chain Equinox, in a blog post on Medium.

“Stuf is truly special because, business opportunity aside, two Black-led VC funds came together to invest in a business founded and run by a woman,” said Henri Pierre-Jacques, Harlem Capital’s managing partner. “Katharine stood out given her industry expertise, leadership and vision.”

The Series A funding was the culmination of many things, but it started with a Stuf member who happened to be a partner at a VC firm, said Lau. “For investors, there is nothing better than firsthand experience to build conviction about a company, and I am incredibly proud that our user experience spoke for itself,” she added.

Stuf was birthed in 2020 during the pandemic when office and commercial real estate stared at huge unused capacity. Three years down the road, underutilized real estate still exists. Consequently, Stuf has never had to construct new storage space. Lau additionally has bet on changed habits of millennials in which “the storage facility becomes an extension of their home.” Stuf operates multiple facilities in eight cities including Washington, D.C., New York, Brooklyn, Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Atlanta, Ga., and Seattle, Wash.

“Pioneering change in real estate is never easy, but the evolving needs of consumers and commercial landlords are driving an appetite for innovation and change on both sides,” said Lau, as Stuf also builds technology that eases many issues for both landlords as well as customers. Stuf claims its members visit storage facilities three times more often than the industry average because of its “wonderful customer experience, location accessibility, and tech enablement.”