Angi CEO Oisin Hanrahan told CNN Business that the name change is to emphasize that the company owns other housing-related services, most notably HomeAdvisor and gig economy marketplace Handy. (Hanrahan is a co-founder of Handy, who joined Angi in 2018 after the company bought its startup.)
“The Angie’s List brand is known and loved … People understand what it stands for and trust it,” said Hanrahan. “The challenge is that we are no longer just a list. Customers were limited and constrained by the literal nature of the name.”
He noted that Angi has focused on all aspects of home improvement, making it easy for clients to find, book and pay for contractors – not just a place to review them.
That strategy has paid off over the past year, when millions of people sat at home during the Covid-19 pandemic or fled to the suburbs for more space. Wherever they live, many people are looking to improve their homes or are taking on major projects such as moving into a new home.
Angi is part of the Barry Diller IAC web of public companies
Shares of Angi are up nearly 25% this year and are up about 250% in the last 12 months.
But what will happen to Angi now that many people who have stayed at home for the past year want to travel more thanks to the increased availability of vaccines and the reopening of the economy? They may not be so focused on finding painters or people to fix a broken cabinet door.
Hanrahan admits that Americans want to get out and do things. But he thinks the broader trend of people improving their homes won’t change – and they’ll increasingly want to use services like Angi on their phones to find, book and pay for professional people, he said.
“Of course, when people start traveling again, there will be a shift in the way people spend. But the much bigger shift is from offline spending to online spending in general,” he said.
As for Angie of Angie’s eponymous list, Angela Hicks Bowman would be cool with the name change. In fact, Hicks is still with the company, serving as both Angi’s Chief Customer Officer and Board Director.
“She is incredibly enthusiastic about the evolution and mission of the company,” said Hanrahan. “Home is the most important place on Earth and we want to help people love where they live.”