Rebuilding Trust in the Service Economy
Today's featured startup is reshaping how Americans get work done at home - bringing reliability, transparency, and dignity back to local trades
Project Overview
Craftwork is a U.S.-based startup that promises homeowners “an easy way to paint their houses.” The company handles everything — from exterior facades to interior walls, whether it’s a new build, renovation, or simple refresh.
Here’s how it works: a customer answers a few questions on the website or in the app, and within 30 seconds receives an instant estimate of cost and completion time.
If the quote looks good, they upload photos, describe their needs, and share comments. Craftwork’s specialists review the project, fine-tune the pricing and schedule, and confirm visit times that fit the homeowner’s calendar — all within minutes.
Once the job starts, the client gets real-time updates: who’s coming, what’s being done, and when it’s finished. The quoted price is final, with no extra fees or “this turned out harder than expected” surprises.
Founded in January 2023, Craftwork launched just three months later in Charlotte, North Carolina. That same year, its revenue was growing 50–100% month-over-month. The startup joined Y Combinator, raised $4 million from YC and other investors, and another $6 million by November — bringing total funding to $10 million in under a year.
Three months to launch, rapid revenue growth, and two investment rounds — Craftwork has turned a simple idea into a fast-scaling business.
What’s the Gist?
The U.S. home painting and finishing market is worth an impressive $24.7 billion — but it’s fragmented, opaque, and full of small local contractors with inconsistent quality. Getting something painted often means phone calls, delays, and unexpected charges.
As one of Craftwork’s founders put it:
“I can order almost anything from my phone — except a painter who’ll show up on time, do a great job, and charge exactly what they promised.”
Most home-service startups act as marketplaces, passing customer orders to independent contractors. That structure makes it nearly impossible to guarantee timing or quality.
Craftwork took a different route: hiring its own painters as full-time employees. These craftsmen receive weekly pay regardless of workload, along with health insurance and professional training.
This model gives the company full control over quality while offering stability to its workforce — a rare thing in the service industry.
It’s an approach that clearly works, and Craftwork isn’t alone in rethinking how home services operate. The startup Improovy, for example, raised $3.3 million (including $2.8 million in 2022) to simplify the process of booking professional painters online.
Other players are modernizing adjacent segments of the broader $500 billion U.S. home improvement market, which includes around 2.5 million companies employing 6 million people — just 2–3 workers per business on average.
One notable example is Honey Homes, a subscription-based handyman service that sends a professional twice a month to handle small household repairs. For $200 per month (or $2,000 per year), customers can keep their homes in perfect shape without worrying about finding or scheduling help. Honey Homes has raised $12.1 million, including $9 million in its latest round.
Another startup tackling the service reliability problem is Carma, which helps users find nearby auto repair shops that can take their cars the same day. The concept mirrors Craftwork’s — digital convenience meets guaranteed execution.
Together, these startups point to a broader trend: software alone isn’t enough. Real innovation comes from combining digital platforms with operational control — building systems that actually deliver what they promise.
Key Takeaways
The service industry is enormous — and deeply flawed. Projects are often delayed, overpriced, or poorly executed.
The “marketplace for everything” model has hit its limit. The next wave of service startups will win by:
Building in-house teams with structured workflows, quality control, and scheduling; or
Developing hybrid systems that manage external contractors or franchisees through software that enforces consistent standards.
Scaling such businesses requires a territory-by-territory, category-by-category approach to maintain control, efficiency, and brand trust.
The ultimate goal: to create a new generation of service companies that deliver what they promise — on time, on budget, and with predictable quality.
It’s a hard problem to solve, but with a $500 billion prize at stake, the challenge is worth it.
Company Info
Craftwork
Website: craftwork.com
Latest Round: $6M, 17.11.2023
Total Funding: $10M across 2 rounds