FI MU graduates score with a startup for babysitting

Petr Šigut and David Hrachový founded the startup Hlídačky.cz a few years ago as students of the Faculty of Informatics at MU. The website combining supply and demand for babysitters and cleaning assistants has since become the largest portal in its field and has won several awards. Today, over five thousand people offer their services there, and others can apply.

At that time, two computer scientists invited Václav Kun, a deserving father of four, who had important practical experience, and started a business. They bet on the desire of every parent to rest from time to time and created a service that guarantees finding a babysitter.

"We are not looking after the children, but the babysitters with a lot of experience. Our service ensures that those interested in babysitting always find a babysitter and it was enough for them to go to a single website”, explains Šigut.

The babysitters were gradually joined by cleaners and, more recently, pet-sitters. Together, the website brings together over five thousand people.

"Each of the babysitters has its own profile on the web, where their references, experiences or photos are collected. In order to be able to guarantee the professionalism of babysitters and the safety of children, we also have our own verification center", describes Šárka Vrbovská from Hlídačky.cz.

The system obviously works. Every month, about 1,500 new parents register on the website, who can then choose from a list of babysitters and contact them themselves. Each advertises its price and parents can have the right one filtered, for example, by distance. The largest selection is in large cities, but the guards already cover the entire country.

The advantage is that the company does not charge any commission from the price of babysitting, parents only pay a membership fee and have access to all profiles. In addition, the website can be connected to Facebook, for example, and to show if the parent does not have friends in common with the babysitter, who can provide the best references.

The company has already collected several awards for the best startups and is still developing. For example, it is constantly recruiting new guards from all over the country, which can log in via a form on the web.

Once they have completed the verification process, they can start guarding. "I choose the ads of my parents, to whom I respond, the price for work and the days when babysitting fits my schedule. I will always agree on the details with the parents themselves”, concludes babysitter Šárka.