Unloq
HOUSING START-UP
I am a part of USC’s Sigma Eta Pi Entrepreneurship Fraternity. I always seek to make an impactful change to the community around me, and was able to realize that here. During the intensive 10-week accelerator program I participated in, I gained the opportunity to scale a student-focused housing start-up called Unloq with my team. We ultimately won 1st place during SEP’s Demo Day against other competitive start-ups. The funds we have acquired will allow us to successfully launch the platform to all USC students in Spring 2021.
ABOUT SIGMA ETA PI
Sigma Eta Pi is USC’s premier entrepreneurship society. Our mission is to transform individuals into entrepreneurs who follow their passion, develop lasting relationships in the startup ecosystem, and create social impact through innovative ventures. Each class consistent of the most passionate and driven individuals chosen from hundreds of applicants. Upon acceptance, members will go through a 10-week accelerator program to develop a startup idea from ideation to implementation. At the end of the program, new members will pitch their startups to a panel of investors and entrepreneurs for potential funding and high impact growth. Now, I will dive into my team and I’s start-up Unloq, which I am so proud to be a part of.
ROLE
VP of Marketing & Finance
DURATION
Ongoing
PROBLEM
Currently, the main platform that’s available and used by USC students for the off-campus housing search is Facebook. This causes lots of frustration for college students who are often in multiple housing groups that are unorganized, not updated, and potentially unsafe.
OUTCOME
A housing platform that centralizes everything housing and subleasing related for students. Students can rely on Unloq to browse available spaces, connect with landlords, and complete transactions.
RESEARCH
Finding off-campus housing has always been a huge struggle personally and for my teammates alike. We knew that many other students shared similar pain points. After doing research on our TAM SAM and SOM to gain a better insight of our market, we found that we can make a direct impact on over 20,000 students.
USER INTERVIEWS
Our next step was to interview students in our target market. We conducted sets of five-question surveys on 1,000 USC students. Some common pain points include (1) difficulty in finding housing that fits their criteria, (2) not knowing whether a listing is still available, and (3) uncertainty when it comes to trusting the landlords. At the same time, we reached out to reputable landlords to start building a database for future collaborations.
THE SOLUTION
With weeks of intensive research and feedback to better understand our users, we were able to build the prototype for a platform that optimizes user’s experience in terms of ease, efficiency, and trust. Unloq seeks to be the website that students refers to when looking to sublease or lease.
Check out our full pitch deck below!
PITCHING UNLOQ TO INVESTORS
At the end of our Founder’s Education program, my teammates Jane, Nico, Brian, and I pitched our startup to seasoned investors and entrepreneurs from the Los Angeles area. It was an amazing experience presenting to a panel of brilliant and eager individuals after months of hard work and pivots.
Everything definitely paid off. Unloq won first place at the Sigma Eta Pi Demo Day! The judges were pleased with our pitch and the audience was enthusiastic about what’s to come.
THE FUTURE OF UNLOQ
My team and I plan to use our award funds to officially launch Unloq to all USC students this Spring semester. We will continue to actively update our social media platforms and seek to collaborate with USC influencers in the near future. In Summer 2021, we look forward to researching our target market on other campuses, and hope to Unloq the safe and easy housing experience for a wider range of students. Be on the look out for new updates on Unloq!