- Founders Factory, an early-stage investor from London, and Vonovia, Europe’s leading housing company, launched a joint PropTech Venture Studio this year. This venture studio supports WALLROUND, a Berlin-based renovation start-up for landlords that offers innovative solutions in the field of energy-efficient renovations.
- WALLROUND targets the €390 billion residential building market in the EU, which is currently in a poor energy efficiency class.
- This support is in line with Founders Factory and Vonovia’s mission to provide new technologies that meet the needs of urban spaces.
WALLROUND is the first startup to receive both capital and know-how to support its growth through the joint PropTech Venture Studio of Founders Factory and Vonovia. WALLROUND aims to transform energy renovations for private landlords and modernize inefficient housing stocks across Europe.
To achieve the EU climate targets for 2045, at least 2% of buildings must be renovated to make them more energy efficient each year. However, estimates suggest that the current renovation rate is less than 0.8%. Obstacles to this range from the lack of digitization of outdated processes to the lack of reliable resources and support for carrying out energy renovations.
WALLROUND addresses this problem by developing a technological and holistic solution that enables landlords to manage and implement their property renovations from analysis and preparation to execution. Starting with multi-family homes in Germany, the company aims to revolutionize the overdue €390 billion residential building market in the EU. With the support of Founders Factory and Vonovia, WALLROUND can make decisive progress and leverage the valuable know-how of Europe’s largest housing company to build a platform that supports private landlords in Germany in the sustainable and climate-friendly transformation of their properties.
Lukas Steinhilber, CEO and founder of WALLROUND , said: “Vonovia is the ideal partner to drive our vision forward. Their know-how in scaling energy renovations, combined with Founders Factory’s venture building capabilities, is the ideal combination for our growth. The fact that we have received this trust just nine months after our founding and four months after the launch shows us that we are on the right track.”
This cooperation marks the first collaboration between Vonovia and Founders Factory. Together they announced the Venture Studio in May this year, which aims, among other things, to “support the scaling and availability of affordable, climate-neutral housing”. The joint venture combines Vonovia’s unrivalled market understanding – with housing for more than a million people in Europe – with Founders Factory’s experience in building and supporting early-stage startups.
Founders Factory’s investment in WALLROUND builds on a strong track record in the PropTech space, having previously backed companies such as Tembo, Acre and Built AI. Since 2015, Founders Factory has built over 90 new companies out of its venture studio.
About WALLROUND
WALLROUND is a Berlin-based startup that develops a digital platform and processes to simplify property renovations for landlords. The focus is on energy efficiency and decarbonization. WALLROUND is committed to modernizing inefficient residential buildings and supports the EU’s climate goals for 2045.
The company was founded by Lukas Steinhilber (CEO), a serial entrepreneur focused on digitizing fragmented markets, Tatiana Wotzasek (CPO), who built 13 global technology companies at Rocket Internet and others, and Henning von Oesen (Managing Director & Head of Projects), who has extensive experience in managing construction projects valued at almost 500 million euros.
Founded in 2024, WALLROUND has already achieved relevant successes in Germany and attracted investments from leading players in the real estate industry.
About Vonovia x Founders Factory Venture Studio
Founders Factory has joined forces with Germany-based Vonovia, Europe’s leading housing company, this year. The new venture studio will provide technological innovations that support the growth and availability of affordable and climate-neutral housing. The partnership underlines the goal of meeting the growing demands of expanding urban spaces.