Lula builds $28M round with bicoastal investor; plans deep expansion into new markets

February 3, 2025  |  Nikki Overfelt Chifalu

Lula leadership: Lance Burton, Bo Lais, Will Parrish and Laxman Degala

Securing Lula’s Series A funding round is not only validation for the Kansas City proptech startup, Bo Lais said; the $28 million in capital means a greater opportunity to enhance the ecosystem for all of his company’s stakeholders, he added.

The funding will allow Lula — a leading platform for streamlined property maintenance solutions and one of Startland News’ Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2022 — to expand from 42 markets into 60 in 2025, said Lais, founder and CEO, noting plans to heavily invest into further product innovation through AI and automation, and to hire some key roles, including heads of finance, marketing, and partnerships. 

“For the customers, we want to improve upon the services and expand our offering,” he explained. “For the residents, it allows us to provide better property maintenance, leading to higher resident satisfaction. For our Lula Pros, we want to increase opportunities for work and growth for them.”

“Then we also want to continue investment in innovation and culture for our employees and shareholders,” Lais added.

The round announced Monday — which will allow Lula to continue to transform property maintenance, the founder said — is led by New York and Silicon Valley-based PeakSpan Capital with participation from existing investor Park City, Utah-based RET Ventures.

A significant portion of the funding will be used to develop and commercialize a new SaaS product called Foresight — a cutting-edge AI-powered work order management SaaS platform — which is engineered to seamlessly integrate in-house maintenance teams, third-party contractors, and Lula Pros into a unified, comprehensive maintenance management system.

“Since meeting Bo and the Lula team a few years ago, PeakSpan has been impressed with Lula’s ability to elegantly address the increasing complexity of residential maintenance management through both differentiated technology and an expansive contractor network,” said Kyle Reitinger, vice president at PeakSpan, in a news release. “The Lula team has demonstrated a clear ability to drive capital-efficient growth and innovate with new product offerings, including the company’s recent Foresight release.”

Investors see incredible opportunity for Lula to further optimize the maintenance workflow across the residential ecosystem, added Reitinger, expressing eagerness to support the team in its next phase of company development.

“This investment marks a pivotal moment for Lula and the property maintenance industry,” Lais noted in a statement. “With PeakSpan’s support and the continued backing of our early investor

RET Ventures, we are set to accelerate our growth, expand our pro network, and deliver even greater value to our customers. Our vision is to make property maintenance seamless, efficient, and stress-free for property managers and residents nationwide.”

RET Ventures initially backed Lula with a $3 million investment in early 2022.

“As owners and operators continue to navigate an uncertain economic environment, streamlining labor-intensive processes such as property maintenance is a top priority,” explained Aaron Ru, a principal at RET Ventures. “We made our initial investment in 2022 because of Lula’s incredible product-market fit and traction, and we’ve been continually impressed by the company’s growth and execution over the past three years.”

Lula’s team during a recent 2025 kickoff event for the company

Since its founding in 2017 by Lais and childhood friend Will Parrish (and with the help of Lance Burton, another childhood friend), Lula has experienced rapid growth, now providing maintenance across 42 markets nationwide, according to the company. With a vetted network of more than 6,000 Lula Pros — including skilled handymen, plumbers, electricians, and HVAC contractors — the company has become a trusted partner for property managers and investors seeking efficient, reliable maintenance solutions.

The Lula team now has grown to more than 80 employees.

Bo Lais, Lula

In 2024, Lula’s proprietary platform processed more than 100,000 work order requests from more than 125 property management customers, demonstrating the company’s robust capabilities and growing market presence.

A member of the inaugural Pitch Perfect class at ECJC (Enterprise Center in Johnson County) in 2017, as well as a 2020 Pipeline Entrepreneurs fellow, Lais credits such programs and leaders like Pipeline’s Melissa Vincent with support that helped get his company to market and beyond.

Lula’s continued success, he noted, will hopefully help to pave the way for the next generation of entrepreneurs in Kansas City. 

“We’re really excited about building a fast-growing proptech startup here in Kansas City,” he said. “For one, I love the city. But it also has provided a lot of support for me personally along the way.”

startland-tip-jar

TIP JAR

Did you enjoy this post? Show your support by becoming a member or buying us a coffee.

Tagged , , ,
Featured Business
    Featured Founder

      2025 Startups to Watch

        stats here

        Related Posts on Startland News

        KC record label disrupts music industry with incubator studio concept that gives artists more freedom, ownership 

        By Tommy Felts | March 31, 2023

        Casio McCombs’ most creative ideas come to him during “dream hours” — late at night and early in the morning when a majority of people are asleep, he shared.  “That’s when all these new ideas for music and how to structure the label would really hit us,” said McCombs, who co-founded the Kansas City-based record…

        Their joyful art began with pom poms, but Bubble Gum Kurt’s upcycled expression won’t be boxed in

        By Tommy Felts | March 31, 2023

        Infusing their work with plenty of color and a DIY approach, Kansas City artist Kurt Ryan weaves their identity into each craft, article of clothing, and piece of jewelry they sell. Ryan’s creates their work as Bubble Gum Kurt, and through their business venture FunStarShine, both of which evoke the colorful wares Ryan creates. “I…

        Startup’s swift action against siloed systems: Finding that ‘single version of truth’ hidden in the data 

        By Tommy Felts | March 30, 2023

        This story is possible thanks to Entrepreneurial Growth Ventures (EGV), a business unit of NetWork Kansas supporting innovative, high-growth entrepreneurs in the State of Kansas. Celerity Enterprises is aiming no lower than industry modernization with its plug-and-play SaaS financial platform — designed to bring clarity to a world of industrial wholesale distribution that often is rooted…

        It’s the ultimate stash: How an exclusive cannabis collaboration is bringing smokeware out of hiding

        By Tommy Felts | March 30, 2023

        Working with acclaimed fashion designer Whitney Manney is a bucket list collaboration, shared Wandering Bud founder Riley Brain. The handmade ceramic smokeware maker has teamed up with the KC-based fashion label WHITNEYMANNEY to create a limited edition collection of cannabis accessories and stash bags. “I’ve always just really admired Whitney’s work and aesthetic,” Brain said.…