BACK TO ALL ARTICLES04/14/2021

Big landlords invest $60M in “tenant experience” startup HqO

PUBLICATION: THE REAL DEAL

Cushman & Wakefield, JLL among investors

Commercial real estate firms Cushman & Wakefield, JLL and DivcoWest are betting on a “tenant experience” startup to help get workers back to their offices.

Boston-based HqO said Wednesday that it closed a $60 million Series C. Cushman was a new investor in the company, along with Suffolk Capital and PruVen Capital. Prior backers JLL, DivcoWest, Accomplice, Insight Partners, Navitas Capital, Allegion Ventures and the Pagliuca family office also participated. The round brings HqO’s total funding to $106.9 million.

HqO was founded in 2018 by Kevin McCarthy, Chase Garbarino and Greg Gomer, who previously started AmericanInno, a digital events business acquired by Advance Publications in 2015.

HqO’s software platform gives landlords the ability to manage tenant-facing tech and amenities in one place. It also has a tenant app, analytics tool and marketplace.

In a statement, Garbarino, HqO’s CEO, said the round comes with strategic partnerships with commercial real estate players. That network will set up HqO “for unprecedented growth as the world returns to offices,” he added. READ MORE