Will Mitchell, co-founder of Contract Simply, courtesy photo.
The co-founders of Contract Simply spent last summer in Mountain View, California in the Y-Combinator program. Mitchell and his co-founder, Andrew Latimer, moved to California, rented an apartment and furniture and spent three months in the accelerator program.
The company initially got rejected when applying to the Y-Combinator program as Renovate Simply. So they re-examined their business and decided to focus directly on the construction contracting market. With the new concept, they got into the program.
Y-Combinator invests $120,000 in the startups for a seven percent equity stake.
The program was worth it, Mitchell said.
“It’s great at giving you a stamp of approval,” he said.
The network of folks for sales, marketing and product development and fundraising is incredible, Mitchell said.
“The program is very good at focusing the company and its objective,” he said. The focus is on revenue, customers and traction, he said.
“They do a fantastic job on emphasizing what’s important,” he said.
Contract Simply, founded in 2013 as Renovate Simply, raised a round last summer from the Central Texas Angel Network. The company recently closed a round of financing, which it will be announcing soon, Mitchell said.
Contract Simply has five employees. The company is hiring engineers and sales people, Mitchell said.
The cost of living and laid-back lifestyle are attractive features for being based in Austin, Mitchell said. The company has raised money from both coasts and has investors in 15 states and the geographic restriction of fundraising hasn’t been limiting for Contract Simply, Mitchell said.
Contract Simply is based at Link Flex, a co-working space in North Austin.
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