GarageHop, a Seattle startup that helps people find parking spaces in residential buildings, has been acquired by Toronto-based WhereiPark.
Founded in 2016, GarageHop charged customers a monthly fee in exchange for access to open parking spaces at various garages in Seattle. It primarily focused on adding parking capacity near park-and-ride lots and split revenue with building/property owners. GarageHop also took advantage of new parking regulations that allowed more multifamily housing owners to rent out excess parking spots, according to the Seattle Times.
GarageHop competed with WhereiPark, which launched in Canada five years ago and operates parking marketplaces in seven other cities across North America. WhereiPark will integrate GarageHop’s infrastructure into its own digital platform.
“With this acquisition, WhereiPark will be offering a turn-key solution for monthly parking at over 50 locations in the Seattle area where individuals or corporate groups can easily reserve and manage their monthly parking,” WhereiPark co-founder Alex Enchin said in a statement.
Helene Costa, who moved from Paris to Seattle in 2013, helped start GarageHop with co-founder Jay Beavers, a longtime leader at Microsoft.
“GarageHop is pleased to be joining a network that spans the country and offers greater choice to our parkers especially for public transit commuters looking for a space near their park-and-rides,” Costa said in a statement. “Additionally, by joining forces with WhereiPark our real estate partners have access to broader demand for parking through WhereiPark’s platform.”
