Lucia
Lucia is a two-sided marketplace connecting travel and hospitality businesses with vetted freelance contractors (CoPilots) for remote administrative, marketing, creative, and customer support services. Following its June 2025 acquisition by Tern, it operates as "Lucia by Tern" with ~350 active freelancers serving 300+ SMB travel advisors.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Lucia does
Lucia is a two-sided contractor marketplace connecting travel and hospitality businesses with vetted freelance professionals (branded "CoPilots"). The platform operates as a web and mobile application, enabling businesses to post project requirements, message contractors, and engage them as independent contractors for remote administrative, strategic, creative, and customer support services. All CoPilots are subject to background checks and 1:1 interviews before gaining platform access, and the marketplace is organized around both hourly engagements (rates from $20-$75) and standardized Packages with tiered pricing (Basic/Standard/Premium) spanning brand identity, social media, Tern setup, itinerary building, and operational support. The primary customer segment is independent travel advisors and SMB travel agencies, with secondary exposure to hospitality entrepreneurs, boutique hotels, and tour operators.
The company's revenue model combines platform commission on completed transactions, per-task billing (charged at the start of each cycle or task), and subscription services for ongoing contractor access. Go-to-market is hybrid: a self-service product-led growth motion (Book a Demo, Become a CoPilot CTAs, blog content, quiz-based matchmaking) for SMBs, and a sales-led motion via Tern (Lucia's parent since June 2025) targeting travel advisors already using Tern's itinerary and workflow platform. The Tern acquisition added approximately 350 active freelancers and introduced a Tern Certification program for CoPilots, which deepens platform integration with Tern's CRM, proposal, and automation tools.
Lucia is a Delaware-incorporated C-corp (legal entity Lucia Hospitality Group, Inc.) headquartered in Lake Grove, NY, founded in 2021. The company has raised approximately $1.5M in disclosed exempt offerings across 2022 and 2024, operates with 1-10 internal employees, and is no longer independent following the June 2025 Tern acquisition. Pre-acquisition investors and valuation data are not disclosed in available sources.
Lucia firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Lucia
- Legal name
- Lucia Hospitality Group, Inc.
- Website
- https://letslucia.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Lucia is a two-sided marketplace connecting travel and hospitality businesses with vetted freelance contractors (CoPilots) for remote administrative, marketing, creative, and customer support services. Following its June 2025 acquisition by Tern, it operates as "Lucia by Tern" with ~350 active freelancers serving 300+ SMB travel advisors.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Lucia is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Lucia business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Platform Commission: Lucia collects a commission for each completed contractor request. CoPilots can view potential earnings or hourly rates for projects on the platform.
- Subscription Services: Annual or monthly subscription-based services available to travel companies for ongoing access to contractor marketplace.
- Per-Task Billing: Travel companies charged at the beginning of each billing cycle or at the beginning of a task request. For ongoing tasks, billing is charged at the end of services provided.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | CoPilot Hourly Rates |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Brand Identity Package |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | TravelJoy Group Booking Pages |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Admin & Tern Support |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Website Copy Audit |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Tern 1:1 Coaching |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Passport to Europe Pack |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Social Media Package |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Tern Workflow & Automation |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Wellness Email Sequence |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Tern + Tique Setup |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Quote Proposal & Itinerary Building |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Out-of-Office Coverage |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels3 records
Lucia product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Lucia operates a two-sided web and mobile marketplace that connects travel industry businesses with vetted freelance contractors (CoPilots) who provide remote administrative, strategic, creative, and customer support services. The platform handles recruitment, vetting via background checks and interviews, project posting, contractor matching, messaging, and payment processing. Following Tern's June 2025 acquisition, the offering now operates as "Lucia by Tern" with deeper integration into Tern's itinerary, workflow, and CRM tools for travel advisors.
Product overview
Lucia operates as a two-sided contractor marketplace (web and mobile app) connecting travel businesses with vetted freelance professionals called CoPilots. The core platform enables businesses to post project requirements, message contractors, and engage freelancers for remote administrative, strategic, creative, and customer support services. Following Tern's acquisition in June 2025, Lucia now operates as "Lucia by Tern," integrating with Tern's itinerary and workflow platform. The product portfolio includes the core marketplace platform, the CoPilot contractor network, pre-packaged service offerings (Packages), virtual assistant services, and Tern integration features including certification programs for CoPilots.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Lucia Marketplace Platform Two-sided web and mobile marketplace platform that enables travel businesses to post project needs, message vetted contractors (CoPilots), and engage freelancers for remote administrative, strategic, creative, and customer support services. Targets independent travel advisors, travel agencies, tour operators, and hospitality businesses.
- CoPilot Network Network of professional contractors with travel industry expertise who offer services including social strategy, administration, itinerary building, marketing, and customer support. CoPilots are vetted through interviews and background checks and can be engaged as side-hustle or full-time contractors.
- Packages (Pre-packaged Service Bundles) Pre-defined, scoped service bundles that travel advisors and agencies can purchase through the marketplace, covering destination research, itinerary building, website design, social media management, email marketing, Tern setup/training, and brand development. Provides transparent pricing and clear delivery expectations.
- Virtual Assistant Services Personalized virtual assistant support for travel advisors covering administrative tasks, booking management, client record maintenance, and general operational support, delivered by vetted CoPilots on the marketplace platform.
Quantifiable outcome
- Cut 140 hours of work in just 3 months
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Lucia
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Lucia technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Lucia partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- TerncoreTern acquired Lucia in June 2025, integrating the contractor marketplace under its platform. Lucia now operates as Lucia by Tern. The acquisition brings about 350 active freelancers to Tern's platform, providing services like administrative support and marketing to travel advisors using Tern's itinerary and workflow tools.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Lucia competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Fiverr: Fiverr is a leading generalist services marketplace offering pre-packaged freelance services. It competes with Lucia on packaged offerings (logo design, social media, admin) but cannot match Lucia's curated travel-industry specialization.
- Toptal: Toptal is a curated marketplace for elite freelance talent (developers, designers, finance). It competes with Lucia for higher-end contractor budgets but lacks industry-specific vetting and hospitality workflows.
- PeoplePerHour: PeoplePerHour is a UK-headquartered generalist freelance marketplace offering vetted freelancers across categories. It competes with Lucia for SMB services spend but operates without travel-specific curation.
- Upwork: Upwork is the largest generalist freelance marketplace, connecting businesses with contractors across all verticals. It competes with Lucia on the demand side (travel businesses can source generalist VAs) but lacks Lucia's domain-specific vetting and hospitality focus.
Emerging players
- Wishup: Wishup is an India-based virtual assistant marketplace serving US/UK businesses with vetted remote assistants. It competes with Lucia on price-sensitive VA demand but lacks travel-industry specialization.
Direct peers
- Travefy: Travefy is an itinerary, proposal, and workflow platform serving travel advisors — the same customer base Lucia targets. Both companies compete for travel advisor mindshare and have overlapping content marketing motions.
- Boldly: Boldly provides premium virtual assistant staffing for entrepreneurs and small business owners. It competes with Lucia on the supply of vetted remote talent and serves overlapping customer personas.
- TravelJoy: TravelJoy is a travel advisor platform with group booking and itinerary tools. It is referenced directly in Lucia's marketplace offerings (CoPilots billable for TravelJoy setup), and overlaps in serving the same advisor customer base.
- Time Etc: Time Etc is a UK-based virtual assistant marketplace matching US/UK entrepreneurs with vetted VAs. It shares Lucia's curated marketplace model and targets similar SMB customers needing flexible remote support.
- BELAY: BELAY is a staffing company placing virtual assistants, bookkeepers, and social media managers with small businesses and executives. Its VA marketplace model and curated matching closely mirror Lucia's CoPilot offering.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Lucia social profiles
Digital presenceLucia financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Lucia leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Lucia funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Lucia M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Lucia
What does Lucia do?
Lucia operates a two-sided web and mobile marketplace that connects travel industry businesses with vetted freelance contractors (CoPilots) who provide remote administrative, strategic, creative, and customer support services. The platform handles recruitment, vetting via background checks and interviews, project posting, contractor matching, messaging, and payment processing. Following Tern's June 2025 acquisition, the offering now operates as "Lucia by Tern" with deeper integration into Tern's itinerary, workflow, and CRM tools for travel advisors.
Is Lucia a public or private company?
Lucia is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Lucia founded?
Lucia was founded in 2021. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Lucia based?
Lucia is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Lucia make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Platform Commission is the primary driver. The others are subscription Services and per-Task Billing.
Who are Lucia's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Fiverr, Toptal, PeoplePerHour and Upwork. Wishup is listed as an emerging player. Direct peers are Travefy, Boldly, TravelJoy, Time Etc and BELAY.
Does Lucia have an API?
No public API is recorded for Lucia.