Managed by Q co-founder Dan Teran had a plan.
After selling his office management company to WeWork last year for a tidy $220 million — $100 million in cash and the rest in stock — he wanted to buy it back when WeWork decided to sell it off along with several other properties following its management shake-up last fall.According to Bloomberg originally — and confirmed by our sources — Teran, who was employed by WeWork for five months after the sale as its head of corporate development and ventures — looked to put together a package to acquire the company beginning in December.
To do so would require a substantial sum, however — enough to both buy the company, plus working capital to maintain its current staff and support its customers.In the end, SoftBank-controlled WeWork apparently better liked the proposal of an outside bidder, and that Eden, a five-year-old company that competes directly with Managed by Q.At least, Eden is confirming today that it has successfully bid $25 million in cash for Managed by Q, whose technology and accounts and an untold number of employees will also be incorporated into its offerings.The money comes from a new, $29 million round that JLL, the commercial real estate services giant, just led for Eden in a round that also includes participation from the Y Combinator Continuity Fund and individual investors.The new round is separate from a $25 million round that Eden closed in November and that was led by Reshape, with participation from Fifth Wall Ventures, Mitsui Fudosan, RXR Realty, Thor Equities and Bessemer Venture Partners, along with numerous other firms.Said Eden CEO Joe Du Bey in an emailed statement to us: &Eden is proud to partner with Managed By Q to further our mission of creating a better place to work, for everyone.
Managed By Q amazing customers, service vendors, team, and product makes it a huge win-win for all stakeholders.
JLL leading the round and becoming a strategic partner to Eden is also exciting and will further accelerate our growth as we work to better serve the SMB category together.Teran did not respond to a separate press request yesterday, but if he frustrated by the outcome, he still has that sale last year to WeWork to celebrate.In the meantime, Eden — which launched in 2015 as on-demand tech repair and support service but eventually found itself in the same office management business as Managed by Q (both connect offices with third-party providers) — has now consolidated its market share, and obviously for a dramatically better price than WeWork paid less than a year ago.The company, which until today employed roughly 70 people, was already active in 25 markets as of late November, including Berlin and London, and it featured more than 2,000 service providers on its platform.
Its acquisition of Managed by Q takes it that much further.