Alumni Spotlight Details

Christian Roberts ‘08 earned his Bachelors of Business Administration (BBA) from The George Washington University in 2012 and went on to receive his J.D. from Pepperdine University School of Law. Christian began his career as in-house technology counsel and then transitioned to a criminal prosecutor for almost nine years. During this time, he also worked in real estate development and independent app development, all of which led him to what he does now as founder and CEO of HAULa, an on-demand hauling marketplace based in St. Louis. HAULa was recently named a 2026 Arch Grants Finalist as well as one of the St. Louis Top Ten Tech Startups, selected to compete in the Startup World Cup Regional Finals. In addition, Christian has been accepted into Founder Framework at T-REX in St. Louis, an 11-week, hands-on and in-person program designed to help early-stage founders gain clarity, build essential startup skills, and create the core materials needed to move their businesses forward. Christian’s brother, The Honorable Steven Roberts ‘06, and sister, Darci Roberts ‘12, also attended Whitfield. 

What are you most thankful for from your Whitfield experience, both in and outside of the classroom?

I am thankful for the classmates and teachers who became important people in my life over my seven years at Whitfield. Both played substantial roles not only in my overall experience at Whitfield but also in my development, both socially and academically, over those years and beyond. I am still good friends with several alumni whom I have known since middle school. Academically, Whitfield taught me how to think critically, write clearly, and advocate for my ideas, skills that carried me through law school and now into entrepreneurship. The small class sizes meant teachers knew me well enough to push me, and I am grateful for that every time those foundations show up in my work today.

What are some of your favorite Whitfield memories?

I loved our Spirit Week celebrations that ended in grade-level lip syncs and a bonfire. It was also fun to get a group of friends together to watch games and support our friends who were on different athletic teams. Last, I worked tech on some theatre productions in high school, and I appreciated being able to contribute to those huge events. 

What advice do you have for alumni, young or seasoned, who are interested in your field?

First, stop waiting to feel qualified. I didn't take a single computer science class before teaching myself to build simple apps, and I'd never run a startup before founding one. The people building companies are not necessarily smarter than you; they just started. Whatever version of "I'll do it when I'm ready" you're telling yourself, the readiness comes from doing it, not before it.

Second, if you are on a winding path, treat it as an asset, not a liability. For years my resume looked unfocused. It turned out to be exactly the toolkit I needed to build HAULa. If your career doesn't look like a straight line, you may simply be accumulating a combination nobody else has. The intersection of your experiences is where your unfair advantage can live.

Finally, whatever you do or build, tie it to something bigger than yourself. The fundraising rejections, the technical setbacks, the weeks where nothing works – none of it is survivable on ego alone. I get through those stretches because HAULa isn't just an app to me. It's income for drivers, jobs for our team, and proof of what can be built in this city. Find the version of that in your own work, and the hard days get a lot lighter.

Describe your career. 

My career has taken a few deliberate turns, from serving as in-house technology counsel to being a criminal prosecutor, along with real estate development and independent app development, all of which led me to where I am now: founder and CEO of HAULa, an on-demand hauling marketplace based right here in St. Louis.

We connect people who need big, bulky items moved - furniture, appliances, equipment, building materials, ATVs, etc. - with vetted local drivers who own the appropriate vehicles and trailers. Customers book through our app, a driver shows up, and something that used to be a headache becomes a 30-second decision. I lead everything from product and engineering to fundraising, operations, and the legal and insurance infrastructure underneath it all.

The path here was anything but a straight line. For a while, my different roles looked like separate lives: the lawyer, the app developer, the real estate guy. HAULa is where they all finally converged. Building a two-sided marketplace in a regulated, insurance-heavy industry demands exactly that combination: someone who can write the contract, spec the software, and understand the physical world of trucks, trailers, and neighborhoods. It turns out I'd spent almost 20 years accidentally preparing for this job.

What fulfills me most is building things that create opportunity for other people. Our drivers are everyday people turning a truck they already own into income. Our team includes people we're growing into their first big roles. And doing it here matters to me. I'm a St. Louis native, and I've never accepted the idea that you have to leave this city to build something ambitious. That conviction runs through everything I do, from HAULa to Mound City Fund, the nonprofit I founded to help fund home improvements for homeowners in underserved neighborhoods.

From here, the goal is to launch, scale across the region, and prove that a venture-scale technology company can be built from St. Louis. We were named a 2026 Arch Grants Finalist and have some great momentum behind us. The next few years are about turning that momentum into a company that our city is proud of. Longer term, I want my work, across the company, the nonprofit, and everything else, to leave St. Louis measurably better than I found it.