# Katharine Lau

> Katharine Lau is the CEO and co-founder of Stuf, a tech-enabled self-storage company that turns underused space inside commercial buildings into neighborhood storage. She started Stuf in New York in 2020 after a pandemic spring-cleaning session exposed how clunky and inconvenient traditional storage had become. Before Stuf, Lau led real estate growth at the shared-workspace company Industrious and worked across institutional and proptech real estate. Stuf has raised roughly $12.8 million, including an $11 million Series A in 2023, and operates in major U.S. metros from New York to Seattle.

- **Role:** CEO and Co-Founder at Stuf
- **Organizations:** Stuf (Stuf Storage), Industrious, PGIM Real Estate, L&L Holding Company, Equinox
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BA, Hotel and Tourism Management, New York University, Study abroad, The American University of Paris (NYU Study Abroad)
- **Known for:** Co-founded and scaled Stuf to 20+ locations across major U.S. cities including New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Atlanta, San Francisco, and Seattle, Raised approximately $12.8 million in total funding, including an $11 million Series A in 2023, Led Stuf to Fast Company's World's Most Innovative Companies list in 2022

## Career timeline

- **2011** — Graduated from New York University with a BA in Hotel and Tourism Management
- **2010s** — Worked across commercial real estate, including roles at Equinox, L&L Holding Company, and PGIM Real Estate
- **2016-2020** — Led real estate and supply growth at Industrious as an early real estate hire, pioneering an asset- and liability-light expansion model
- **2020** — Co-founded Stuf during the pandemic after a spring-cleaning insight into the self-storage market
- **2021** — Raised $1.8M seed round led by Harlem Capital Partners and Wilshire Lane Capital
- **2022** — Stuf named to Fast Company's World's Most Innovative Companies list
- **2023** — Closed $11M Series A led by Altos Ventures and Allegion Ventures
- **2024** — Recognized in Connect CRE's Next Gen Awards (New York Tri-State); Stuf operating 20+ locations across U.S. metros

## Achievements

- Co-founded and scaled Stuf to 20+ locations across major U.S. cities including New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Atlanta, San Francisco, and Seattle
- Raised approximately $12.8 million in total funding, including an $11 million Series A in 2023
- Led Stuf to Fast Company's World's Most Innovative Companies list in 2022
- Reached 90% unit occupancy within three months at the first San Francisco location
- Built a landlord revenue-sharing model that turned partners into investors
- Recognized in Connect CRE's 2024 Next Gen Awards for the New York Tri-State region

## Latest updates

- **2024-04** — Stuf hiring senior operations leadership as it scales its multi-city footprint.
- **2024-10** — Lau marked four years building Stuf, reflecting on the company's growth journey on LinkedIn.

## Links

- Website: https://stufstorage.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katharinelau
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/katharine_lau
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/storemystuf
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/storemystuf

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/katharine-lau
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-16