The people
What they build
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Working at Guiker
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On the TechTO stage
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About
Nan Hao studied mathematics and computational finance and joined Sonder — then called Flatbook — early enough to be a generalist doing its accounting and pricing models. Hedging short-term rental risk against foreign-student demand showed him a market of his own, and he left in 2015 to build Guiker for Chinese international students looking for housing in Canada. He told TechTO's Founders & Funding audience in March 2020 that he bootstrapped for years because he was a stronger operator than fundraiser and had no team, concept or track record to sell. Real Ventures led the first institutional round. Guiker has since bought Willow.ca (November 2023) to add fractional investing and SplitSpot to enter the US, and now runs offices in Toronto, Montreal, Chicago and Boston.
Backers
Real Ventures led the first institutional round; Isaac Souweine, the partner who did the deal, appeared alongside Nan Hao on the TechTO stage in 2020
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Quick answers
What does Guiker do?
It runs a cross-border rental network and a fractional real estate investing product, describing itself as "a real estate operating system." It started by finding housing for Chinese international students studying in Canada.
Who founded Guiker and when?
Nan Hao founded it in 2015, leaving his job at Sonder — then named Flatbook — where he had handled finances and pricing models as an early generalist hire.
Why did Guiker bootstrap for so long?
Nan Hao said on the TechTO stage in 2020 that he had a profitable model from the start, was a stronger operator than fundraiser, and as sole founder never had a clear stretch of time to run a raise. Real Ventures' cheque came roughly four years in.
Where does the name come from?
Nan Hao told the same audience the company is "named after a turtle shell" in Chinese.