Homecoming

After starting TrackR in a Goleta garage eight years ago, founders Chris Herbert and Christian Smith are returning to the Good Land, this time to a nearly 39,000 sf officebuilding with about 100 of their closest friends in tow. The company’s new headquarters at 7410 Hollister Ave in Hollister Business Park were secured by leases signed this summer.

“TrackR outgrew its location in downtown Santa Barbara and decided Goleta was a better fit for the new chapter underway,” broker Liam Murphy said. Murphy represented TrackR in the transaction, along with Francois DeJohn and Steve Hayes, who also represented the landlord. All three are partners with Hayes Commercial Group, based in Santa Barbara.

The building was immaculately remodeled by Citrix Online (now LogMeIn) nine years ago to create one of the most impressive “creative” office interiors on the South Coast. The multitextured work environment includes high wood beam ceilings, exposed ducting, sculptural acoustical elements, and glass-wall offices. Another selling point was the location, near the airport, the amenities of Goleta, and most of the area’s new (and more affordable) housing.

Neighboring tenants in Hollister Business Park include InTouch Health and Moog, Inc. Citrix/LogMeIn moved to the adjacent campus at 7414-7418 Hollister Ave, which it purchased in 2013.

“Alexa, ask TrackR to find my phone.”

TrackR makes item trackers and an app that help users locate personal items, including keys, wallets, and even pets. The company has been in the news recently due to a $50 million round of funding on August 2, 2017. This new infusion included existing investor Amazon.com, which has integrated TrackR app features into its Alexa voice command service.

Chris Herbert and Christian Smith met as undergraduates at UC Santa Barbara. The pair entered the UC Santa Barbara business plan competition and won. They began development the day they graduated in 2009 and launched their first product, Phone Halo, in 2010. After ever-improving iterations of their first product and millions of devices sold, the company continues to unveil new and innovative products, such as their latest coin-sized device, Trackr Pixel, that rings and lights up to make misplaced items easily findable.

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Hayes Commercial Group has become the go-to brokerage for tech, defense, and medical device companies in the greater Santa Barbara area. In addition to TrackR, a partial list of clients includes: Citrix/LogMeIn, Sonos, Amazon.com, AppFolio, Yardi Systems, FLIR Systems, RightScale, Graphiq, Inogen, InTouch Health, Tecolote Research, Soraa Laser Diode, LogicMonitor, QAD, Raytheon, Seek Thermal, FastSpring, Conversant, Apeel Sciences, Curvature, Invoca, and Deployable Space Systems.