A Los Angeles-based startup is making it easier for young professionals to outfit their homes in a stylish way without breaking the bank.
Fernish, founded in 2017 by Michael Barlow, is a premium, sustainable furniture rental brand with a mission to make home-furnishing effortless. The startup lets people rent from brands like Crate & Barrel, Floyd and Campaign at a fraction of the cost of buying.
The renter chooses for how long they want to rent the pieces and then has the option to keep them by paying off the remaining retail cost at the end of the rental period. Fernish provides access to furniture for every part of the home with a range of prices in each category. Sofas, for example, rent for as little as $42 per month or as much as $168 per month.
"For an urban young professional who [is] largely renting apartments, bouncing around from place to place, there’s no marriage between service and the subscription economy," Barlow said. "That’s the problem we’re really trying to solve."
Fernish has raised more than $58 million in venture capital funds since 2017, including an undisclosed Series B round in November.
Recently, the startup added five new executive-level employees to its team. The timing, Barlow said, was the perfect way to up-level Fernish as it moves into what's expected to be a busy and successful year.
"You have to sow a track record of growth on the business," he said. "I think it’s harder to hire good senior executives than it is to raise capital, so to be able to do that with such an exciting group in the last four months is huge."
Fernish's services are currently available in Southern California, Seattle, Austin and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Barlow said the team has identified at least 15 markets across the county that they believe are a good fit for the business.
"Our company really works when we have wider market coverage across the cities where our target audiences are moving into and around," he said. "We'll look to expand to more markets this year, which widens the coverage area and drives our mission."
