A firefighter-turned-founder just secured $13.5 million to solve a problem he lived through for over a decade. Garage, the Y Combinator-backed marketplace for public safety equipment, announced its Series A funding led by Infinity Ventures to transform how fire departments buy and sell critical equipment nationwide.
Garage founder Martin Hunt spent 11 years as a firefighter watching small communities struggle with a broken equipment market. Fire departments were stuck hunting through Facebook groups and classified ads for $100,000+ firetrucks, while cities had no efficient way to sell old equipment nationwide. Hunt's solution just landed $13.5 million in Series A funding from Infinity Ventures to fix the entire ecosystem.
The 26-year-old CEO's eureka moment came during a 2023 conversation with a fellow firefighter. "When I couldn't find anything, it became clear that there was a need for a streamlined, nationwide marketplace for expensive, hard-to-move equipment like firetrucks," Hunt told TechCrunch. "A few months later, I left my job with no product or funding to build the solution."
Partnering with college friend Alaz Sengul as CTO, Hunt launched Garage through Y Combinator's Winter 24 cohort. The marketplace automates the entire procurement process that used to bog down fire departments in paperwork and logistics nightmares. "Many of our customers are civil servants, firefighters, fleet managers, and public work directors who don't have the administrative bandwidth to deal with endless paperwork and logistical coordination," Hunt explained to TechCrunch.
Garage's AI-powered platform handles everything from equipment appraisals to freight coordination. Sellers upload their gear, get instant AI valuations, then list items for auction or immediate purchase. Buyers request quotes for warranties and shipping directly through the platform, while Garage coordinates delivery using AI logistics tools. The security layer proves crucial given transaction sizes often exceed $100,000.
"With transactions of this size, often times greater than $100,000, security is a major concern, especially with the number of scammers that lurk on platforms like Facebook marketplace," Hunt told TechCrunch. The platform's verification systems address fraud risks that plague informal marketplaces where departments currently shop.
The funding momentum builds on Garage's earlier $4.5 million seed round from Initialized Capital. Hunt described the Series A process as "catalytic," with Infinity Ventures joining after meeting the founders through their YC connections. Additional investors include Benchstrength, Wayfinder Ventures, and FJ Labs, bringing total funding to $18 million.
Garage already operates across all 50 states, serving cities like Burlington, Virginia, and South Charleston, West Virginia. The fresh capital targets team expansion and marketplace enhancement as demand surges from budget-constrained fire departments seeking cost-effective equipment solutions.
The timing couldn't be better for govtech marketplaces. Public safety budgets face increasing pressure while equipment costs soar, creating perfect conditions for platforms that maximize purchasing power. Garage's model lets departments stretch limited funds while ensuring sellers reach national buyers instead of local-only markets.
Competitive alternatives remain fragmented across auction sites like GovDeals and informal Facebook groups, leaving significant gaps in security, logistics, and pricing transparency. Garage's integrated approach tackles each pain point through purpose-built tools designed for public safety procurement workflows.
The Series A positions Garage to capture growing market share as fire departments modernize purchasing processes. Hunt's insider knowledge from 11 years in firefighting provides competitive advantages in understanding customer needs and building trust within tight-knit emergency services communities.
Hunt's journey from firefighter to funded founder illustrates how domain expertise drives successful govtech startups. With $18 million in funding and nationwide traction, Garage is positioned to modernize public safety procurement while helping fire departments maximize limited budgets. The company's next challenge involves scaling operations to handle increasing transaction volume as more departments abandon fragmented buying processes for streamlined marketplace solutions.
