Why Los Angeles is the best city to build your startup, according to one founder
Laurel & Wolf has software that connects designers and clients virtually, letting designers work for customers anywhere across the country.
When you're someone who wants interior design work done, you go to the website, take a style quiz, answer questions about the space you want designed, and upload pictures and information about the dimensions of your space.
Then, your project is launched on our platform. A typical customer gets different designs from 3 to 5 designers, who have been matched in regard to your style, your profile and the type of room you're doing. Then, you pick the designer you like the best, and you go through an iterative process with them to figure out how best to style your space.
Laurel & Wolf is based in West Hollywood, in Los Angeles. The city may not be as widely known for startups as San Francisco and New York, but it's home to buzzy startups like Snapchat, Soylent, The Black Tux, Who What Wear, and more.
So what makes Los Angeles an appealing place to start a tech company?
"We're an incredibly diverse city," says Fine. "You have pockets of people from literally all over the world."
In addition, she says it's a great city for creative types, which is pretty on-brand for her company.
"Because the entertainment industry is based in LA, it attracts a lot of creatives," she told Business Insider. "And I think when you're thinking about building consumer brands, whether it's on your marketing team or your sales team, and the fact that Los Angeles is a huge interior design hub - we have been able to attract incredible talent, people who already live in Los Angeles, but also people who are interested in relocating to Los Angeles from the Valley and from NYC because it's a great place to live, a great quality of life, and it's great for creatives."
Laurel & Wolf has raised $25.5 million in VC funding from big names like Benchmark Capital. Tim Draper contributed to the startup's seed round of funding. Right now, the almost two-year-old startup has 52 employees working out of its West Hollywood offices.