Home project management company joins St. Pete incubator

University of South Florida alumni Lawrence Cirillo understands firsthand the challenges of planning a major home project, such as replacing a roof or an air conditioning system.

This led him to create Henry, which is affectionately named after his dog. The marketplace platform manages every step of a project, from planning and pricing to scheduling and installation. Cirillo has developed a network of contractors to complete the work. 

The Henry team moved to the St. Petersburg-based incubator spARK Labs by ARK Invest, at the ARK Innovation Center, earlier this year. An official announcement was made last week. 

Prior to launching Henry, Cirillo worked in the home services industry for five years. He believes the industry is “fragmented,” especially when it comes to sales, coordination and financing.

From left, Henry the dog and Henry founder Lawrence Cirillo. Photo provided.

“All of those things have to try to come together in different products or software,” Cirillo said. “Then it relies on the salesperson to explain everything to the homeowner. Unfortunately, a lot of experiences with those salespeople end up being a high pressure scenario where the homeowner didn’t make a comfortable decision.” 

Creating a “unified home project marketplace” has been on Cirillo’s mind for quite some time. In fact, he began developing the concept three years ago. 

Initially, Cirillo started to work on the initiative with his brother and a group of engineers. Once they all got jobs, Cirillo decided to put the project “into hibernation.” He explained that he did not have all the necessary capabilities to build out the software. 

However, emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence inspired Cirillo to pursue the opportunity again. 

“This homeowner platform should also be alive in a way,” he explained. “It should be able to do things for the homeowner rather than the homeowner just coming to it and making decisions. It should be a partner in that process.” 

Cirillo argued that technology “is one of the most primary ways that we as humans have been able to turn scarcity into abundance.” Henry incorporates AI in certain aspects of the experience. However, the pricing, financial and scheduling components remain human-driven. 

“We don’t want to involve AI in processes that are business critical or fundamental to the project,” he said. “How you combine those two things together is a fun engineering challenge.” 

Henry officially launched in April. The platform focuses on roofing, HVAC, solar, battery storage and whole-home remodel projects. Cirillo and his team began to work with users this summer. The company will initially focus on the Tampa Bay area. 

Short-term, Cirillo and his team plan to review user feedback and improve the platform. If the software proves to be an effective “interface for starting and completing home projects,” he hopes to scale the business across the nation. 

Moving to spARK Labs by ARK Invest was not a difficult decision. Cirillo explained that there are many incubator programs in cities such as San Francisco, Seattle or New York. However, the entrepreneur wanted to stay in the local area. 

“I came across a post from Becca Brown, spARK Labs by ARK Invest’s CEO and president, about the program,” he said. “I was like ‘oh my gosh, this really aligns with my ideas on how we need to advance progress and innovation within Tampa Bay.’” 

Once Cirillo reached out to Brown, she invited him to participate in an event at the incubator with ARK Invest’s researchers. 

ARK Invest was founded by Cathie Wood. She relocated the company to St. Petersburg from New York in 2021. The investment management firm focuses on five key themes: artificial intelligence, robotics, blockchain, energy storage and multiomics biology. 

“They just really are focused on helping founders build strong businesses and helping us create products that are going to provide real value to our end users,” Cirillo added. “I just think that it’s a really cool idea that’s finally here in Florida.”

Cirillo explained that it’s been “really valuable to be surrounded by like-minded people.” He has connected with other founders and exchanged ideas.

“We first met Lawrence Cirillo several months ago and were immediately impressed by his focus, clarity of vision and exceptional ability to execute,” said Brown in a statement prepared for the Catalyst. “As the founder of Henry, a company reimagining how technology supports homeowners and home projects, Lawrence is tackling a meaningful challenge with a disciplined, customer-first approach.” 

Henry website