Toronto-based iRestify has raised $1 million in seed funding for its platform, which allows businesses to book insured cleaning services online.
The funding was led by Birchmere Ventures with participation from Good News Ventures, along with investors from Maple Leaf Angels, and others.
“This is essentially an offline industry going online.”
The startup was co-founded by Erifili Morfidis and Charlotte Gummesson in 2016, and offers an online-only platform for accessing insured cleaning services for properties. Companies get real-time access to service details, payments, and communications through the dashboard.
“Typically, in the traditional model, you contact someone by phone or email, then they have to visit your site for a quote. You have to negotiate, and then you sign a contract,” said Gummesson. “This is very time-consuming and not the way people expect to do business today.”
Since it launched, iRestify has counted Emily’s House, a children’s hospice, among its clients. The company has partnered with Intact Insurance to provide insurance for cleaning services when iRestify’s contractors do not carry their own separate coverage.
“As Toronto’s only hospice for children facing life-threatening illnesses, it is of the utmost importance that our environment at Emily’s House communicates care, compassion, and comfort,” said Dan Dempster, director of operations for Emily’s House. “iRestify’s services help us achieve the highest standard of cleanliness, which contributes significantly to comfort measures for our patients and their families.”
Currently, the platform is available in the Greater Toronto Area, Ottawa, and Montreal. The funding will be used for further expansion.
“This is essentially an offline industry going online,” Morfidis says. “We’re also seeing the on-demand economy growing in many industries. Cleaning services–particularly in Toronto, with its booming business community–are ripe for innovation, and we’re proud to be leading this market.”