US: WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann has invested $30 million in Alfred Club Inc., a startup that provides apartment buildings with services including concierge staff and software.
The Neumann family investment office, 166 2nd LLC, is leading a $42 million funding round for Alfred and a spokesman for Neumann. The round also includes previous investors such as Spark Capital and New Enterprise Associates, as well as Greystar Real Estate Partners LLC.
Alfred’s co-founder and chief executive officer, Marcela Sapone, said she shares with Neumann “the perspective that real estate can do more for people, that we should demand more from our greatest expense.”
Alfred operates in more than 100,000 apartments and is now backed by close to $100 million in funding. It provides multifamily buildings with the staff and the software to manage maintenance requests and paperwork. It takes on tasks that residents request through an app — such as grocery shopping, dog walking or cleaning. Sapone said Alfred “is the operating system for what we think are next-generation buildings that are looking at themselves as a true home rather than a sterile apartment building”.
Alfred also works to build community within its apartment buildings by hosting happy hours or educational events such as bread-making, Sapone added.
Neumann attempted to expand in to the residential space before leaving WeWork, with the launch of the WeLive division, which has subsequently been shelved in the light of the company’s failed IPO plans.
