Residence restore service Keepe lays off employees as financial uncertainty spooks startups

Over the past year, home repair marketplace startup Keepe tripled its enterprise customer base and grew work order volume by 200%.

Yet the Seattle company recently laid off employees as rising inflation and other macroeconomic factors are causing tech startups to cut expenses.

Keepe CEO Rishi Mathew confirmed the cuts to GeekWire but declined to provide specific numbers. The company has 36 employees, according to LinkedIn.

Keepe is the latest startup to slash headcount. Tech companies cut more than 15,000 positions last month. This week GeekWire reported on layoffs at trucking marketplace startup Convoy and cannabis retail software provider Dutchie.

Venture capitalists are advising tech companies to cut expenses and extend their cash runways.

“While we had to make some difficult personnel changes a couple weeks back, it has allowed us to ensure that Keepe is well positioned to navigate the increasing uncertainty in the global markets,” Mathew told GeekWire.

Mathew co-founded Keepe with his RealNetworks colleagues in 2016. The startup matches home repair technicians with property managers and other real estate companies that look after homes and apartments. It has raised $8 million to date, including a $5 million round last year.

“We remain convinced that the B2B home services industry is ripe for disruption with the kind of value-added machine learning/automation-driven service that Keepe provides,” Mathew said. “The momentum we’ve experienced over the last 12 months is proof of that.”