HKDecoman raises US$1.4m to revamp Hong Kong's home renovation industry

It offers a one-stop shop including a physical outlet stocked with tools and an online marketplace.

When entrepreneurs Benny Liu, Andy Lau and Simon Tang pooled their savings and set out to establish a one-stop digital renovation platform, the home renovation industry in Hong Kong was rickety at best. Homeowners were plagued by a crippling lack of information, low transparency rates and quality issues with suppliers, homeowners had little choice but to hire an extremely costly decorator or do the work themselves without the convenience of a central platform that could assign them a reliable company that could respond to their particular renovation needs.

Enter HKDecoman. Launched in 2016, the startup connects homeowners with decoration companies and engineers as well as offer consultancy services for home renovation through its website. Once information of the renovation unit is entered into the system, a consultant will follow up within twelve hours to respond to the user’s design preference, budget and location. The startup will then proceed to select up to three companies for the user whilst a specialist will monitor progress during renovation. “Other than other similar platforms offering one to two related services, what HKDecoman is trying to do is to build the whole online to offline ecosystem,” the firm told Hong Kong Business.

Online marketplace, education
The startup also has a physical office called HKDecoBar which aims to be the city’s largest renovation experience centre. The bar offers monthly courses and a trial-use area stocked with renovation materials, parts and tools. The DIY tools and building materials available on its bar are all paired with a QR code that are linked to the items for sale in its e-marketplace, HKDecoMall.

Beyond the startup’s main offerings, HKDecoman takes its commitment to advancing the renovation industry by honing its educational component. The startup has produced over 700 tutorial videos and provides online decorating tips and anti-scam guidelines on its website. “HKDecoman is the only player in the industry which has invested a lot in building content, divided into articles and video, which enables our users to have an all-round experience during the whole process, starting from researching info to post-decoration services,” the firm added.

The startup is now valued at $50m after it raised US$1.4m in funding in October 2018. HKDecoman aims to enhance products and integrate resources before embarking on its plans to expand into China and Southeast Asia over the next three years.