Robin, which pitched a combined Uber-for-lawn-care and robotic-lawnmower-as-a-service at Disrupt SF’s Startup Battlefield last year, is making some big changes. It quietly sold the first part to Porch earlier this year and is now focused on expanding the robot service nationwide via a franchising plan. (And it appeared on Shark Tank, too.)
The service essentially subcontracted to local lawn care providers, allowing people to set up recurring mows and edging and so on without contracting with the companies themselves. On the robot side of the business, Robin essentially leased and supported custom lawnmower bots so customers could have that futuristic privilege without dropping two grand up front.
“When we announced at Disrupt, things were just booming,” co-founder and CEO Justin Crandall said. “Demand was as good as thought it would be.” But it became clear to them that the robotic side of the business was the future and likely the easier one to grow.
So they sold the lawn service on demand part of the company in June to “one of the big marketplace-type companies,” and although he declined to name it, I confirmed that it was Porch. (The company confirmed the purchase, but did not provide any further details on the transaction.)
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