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In line with national trends, startups in and around the nation’s capital continue putting their faith in not making every employee go to one office daily.
Founders cited benefits like flexibility in a recent survey of the 2024 RealLIST Startups conducted by Technical.ly. Remote and hybrid work has helped with hiring and work-life balance, wrote Jocelyn King, the founder of the legal compliance platform VirgilHR. She’s expanded the staff count to six since being honored in February.
“Working remote allows greater flexibility in finding the best talent across the country,” King wrote. “The team is very happy with the remote arrangement.”
Across Technical.ly’s markets, 43% of startups are exclusively working remotely, per the recent survey. Slightly more than half have hybrid policies, and fewer than 5% require work to only be done in the office. None of the respondents in the DMV reported that requirement.
Sade Luwoye, the COO and cofounder of the honorable mention TribeMeets, has similar reasons for sticking to remote work with her team of three. Plus, she’s seen it help with creativity.
One founder is tapping into coworking spaces in the region: Mackenzie Loy, founder of the online marketplace Homemade in DC, recently signed a virtual office lease agreement at VentureX in Adams Morgan. She can book in-person offices as needed to meet with interns or customers, which Loy wrote offers more options.
Most honorees also anticipate making new hires in the next year, plus building on partnerships and products.
Founders are also taking advantage of DC’s proximity to the federal government. For example, Homemade in DC worked with the Department of State to fill welcome bags at the summer’s NATO Summit.
Crux, a platform that allows financial institutions, clean energy developers and tax credit buyers to sell and transfer tax credits, is also partnering with organizations like the DC-headquartered American Clean Power Association. The startup has more than 500 partnerships, per Emily Hughes, the vice president of growth.
How money flows in the region
All but one respondent startup reported new funding in the DMV, with tallies ranging from $150,000 to $1.5 million. They secured a mix of venture capital, angel funding, contracts and cash through an accelerator.
About 88% of honorees throughout Technical.ly’s markets have secured new funding or revenue streams since February.
The largest reported raise in the DC area came from Keep Company, which closed at $1.4 million in April through VC funding. Tidal Cyber, an honorable mention that raised a $5 million seed around a year ago, also recently announced investment from Capital One Ventures and USAA; a spokesperson declined to specify the amount invested.
VirgilHR raised $500,000 through VC and angel funding. The startup also dramatically boosted its revenue: King, its founder, said the firm went from $30,000 in annual recurring revenue to $160,000 in less than six months.
VC funding has been difficult for early-stage founders to secure overall. DC’s third quarter was the lowest valuation it’s been in two years, according to the most recent Venture Monitor report from PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association. Despite the raise, King noted fundraising has been her biggest challenge over the past six months. Only 22% of startups that reported new funds raised through venture capital across Technical.ly’s geographic focus areas.
However, several startups reported funds that came through contracts or clients in the DMV and in other mid-Atlantic regions. University Startups raised $400,000, and Upling reported $150,000.
This is similar to trends in other markets. About 46% of startups surveyed in all of the markets reported new funds through contracts and customers.
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