By Teasha Cable, CEO & Co-Founder, CModel Data, Inc.
What if I told you that the answer to urban living isn't buying more, organizing better, or Marie Kondo-ing your life into oblivion? What if the real answer is not owning the stuff in the first place?
Enter Yael Shemer, co-founder and Chief Commercial Officer at TULU who's turning this "what if" into reality. Recognized by Harvard Business School and Forbes 30 Under 30, Yael is leading a platform that's fundamentally reshaping how we think about consumption, ownership, and urban life itself.
Here's the thing about modern life: we buy stuff, use it once or twice, and then it sits there. Taking up space. Gathering dust. Making us feel guilty every time we look at it. That fancy bread maker? Used in twice. That power drill? Still in the box.
Instead of every apartment having its own vacuum cleaner that sits idle 99% of the time, what if an entire building shared high-quality equipment that everyone could access when they actually needed it? That's the genius of the sharing economy—and Tulu is making it work through smart IoT technology that brings these products right to your door within your building.
Let's talk about about the environmental impact here. The circular economy isn't just a buzzword—it's a fundamental reimagining of how resources flow through our lives. And the wisdom nuggets from Yael's approach are clear:
One high-quality vacuum serving 50 apartments instead of 50 cheap vacuums. That's 49 fewer products manufactured, shipped, and eventually dumped in a landfill.
Multiply that across power tools, kitchen appliances, and other occasional-use items, and you're looking at a massive reduction in resource consumption and waste.
But here's where it gets even better: when products are shared, there's actually an incentive to make them better. More durable. More repairable. Because they're being used more frequently, quality matters. This creates a virtuous cycle where manufacturers are rewarded for building things that last, not things designed for planned obsolescence.
I like it. A lot.
Now, here's something that doesn't get talked about enough in the sustainability conversation: the sharing economy isn't just about stuff—it's about people.
When Yael started Tulu seven years ago (at just 25 years old), she understood something profound: moving from being an "environmental studies student and part-time waitress" to leading a company in the usage economy meant recognizing that entrepreneurship is "the best tool for crazy self-growth." And that growth isn't just individual—it's collective.
"Entrepreneurship is the best tool for crazy self-growth."
Think about what happens when your building adopts a sharing model:
This isn't just convenient—it's creating a new social contract for urban living. One where access wins over ownership, where collaboration beats isolation, and where living with less actually means living more.
Yael drops some serious wisdom about staying true to your mission while remaining adaptable. Tulu constantly goes back to "first principles" and asks:
"What is it that we're trying to do?"
The answer? Make renting things incredibly convenient and sustainable.
The method? Whatever works best right now.
"We always say, we found the best way right now to do what we're trying to do," Yael explains. "But if in two years drones are a thing or robots are a thing, we'll try that as well."
That's the mindset right there. The goal isn't to build a drone company or an IoT company or any specific technology play. The goal is to fundamentally change how we consume. If drones help achieve that mission? Drones it is. If robots work better? Bring on the robots.
This kind of mission-focused flexibility is what separates companies that make real impact from those that get stuck defending yesterday's solutions.
Here's Yael's second non-negotiable: be obsessed with the end user. And she means obsessed.
Be obsessed with the end user.
For Tulu, this means deeply understanding the daily lives of urban students and young professionals who want convenience, sustainability, and freedom from clutter. They partner with landlords in residential buildings and student housing to bring essential products right to people's doorsteps—or more accurately, right to their apartment doors.
This means constantly questioning whether your current approach truly meets user needs or if there's a better way. It means listening, observing, and being willing to pivot even when you've invested years into a particular solution. That kind of brutal honesty with yourself? That's where real innovation lives.
"Even if you've spent three years building something out, stay fresh and stay ruthless in the way you ask questions."
Let's zoom out for a second and look at what Tulu represents in the broader context of urban sustainability:
This is what the future of urban living looks like. Not minimalism through deprivation, but abundance through access. Not isolation, but community. Not ownership that owns you, but freedom to use what you need when you need it.
Not minimalism through deprivation, but abundance through access.
At the end of the day, Yael Shemer's journey with Tulu shows us that building a successful business with a big vision isn't just about technology or market strategy—though those matter.
It's about heart. ❤️
It's about a deep understanding of your purpose, a willingness to adapt, and an almost emotional connection to the people you aim to serve. It's about making decisions with both your head and your heart, and having the courage to stay true to your vision in pursuit of what truly matters.
Seven years in, from environmental student to Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree, Yael proves that entrepreneurship really is "the best tool for crazy self-growth"—and when that growth is directed toward solving real problems for real people while healing the planet?
That's when magic happens. ✨
Want less stuff and more life? That's the sharing economy. That's the circular economy. That's the future Yael Shemer is building.
Listen to our conversation on the #DynamicDecisionsPodcast
