With soaring rents in the Bay coupled with a desire for good California weather, tech companies are flocking to Los Angeles. In 2014, AngelList ranked Los Angeles as the fastest growing tech startup region in the country. Companies such as Google, Snapchat, and Facebook have opened offices in the “Silicon Beach” area of Santa Monica, Venice, and Marina del Rey. But that’s not all that LA tech has to offer.
Here are some of the hottest startups in LA you should take a look at.
Hyperloop One
The dream of every Angeleno is to get from point A to point B without dealing with the stress and frustration of LA’s famous traffic. Hyperloop One is a company founded by venture capitalist Shervin Pishevar (co-founder of Sherpa Capital) and former SpaceX engineer Brogan BamBrogan (yes, that’s his real name) to make Elon Musks’ Hyperloop concept a reality. The company is currently testing a prototype in the Nevada desert and aims to have an operational Hyperloop system built by 2020. Its competitor, Hyperloop Transportation Technology, another LA-based startup (formed by team collaboration and crowdsourcing and backed by NASA and Boeing veterans), is racing to do the same.
The Black Tux
Unless you’re James Bond, you probably don’t have a constant need for a tuxedo and renting a tuxedo from a store doesn’t always mean it fits well. The Black Tux, based in Santa Monica, is an online-only formalwear rental site that makes it easy to rent perfectly-tailored tuxedos and suits starting at $95 (average rental price is about $150). Customers get sent measuring tape and instructions on how to measure. These measurements are used to tailor tuxedos and suits to the customer’s specifications, which are then delivered by mail.
RadPad
RadPad, based in Venice, makes it easier for renters to find places to rent and landlords to list their apartments and homes to rent via smartphone app. Users can search for rental listings by city or phone geolocation. Information about available places include pictures, detailed information about home layout, rental availability, and more. Even after renters find the perfect place, the app comes in handy with its rent payment features, including the option to schedule automatic payments.
Dollar Shave Club
Why do razors have to cost so much? Dollar Shave Club was started to provide high quality razors that compete with products from behemoths like Gillette and Schick, but at a much lower price point. Dollar Shave Club is an online subscription service that sells high quality razors, personal grooming supplies, and hair products for only a few dollars a month. The Venice-based company currently has over two million subscribers. Originally marketed towards men, Dollar Shave Club currently has a customer base that’s 20% women.
Parachute
Need some high quality sheets to go with that Casper mattress you ordered online? Well, now you can find high quality direct-to-consumer home textiles online as well. Parachute is a direct-to-consumer company that sells top-quality but affordable Italian bedding and bath towels through its website (and at its headquarters store in Venice Beach). For every Venice Set sold, Parachute donates one mosquito prevention net to Nothing But Nets, an organization that provides mosquitos nets for families in sub-Saharan Africa.
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