Demo Day at AlphaLab featured recent program grads DeviceKnit, 80 Degrees West Interior Design, Inc., Black Locus, PhotoSynesi, and Shoefitr. Let’s go ahead with a description of each of the companies before I get into the nit and grit of who stood out (after all, you may want to judge for yourself).
DeviceKnit: “A consumer electronics content and community site focused on helping people discover new uses and connection options for their devices.” With so many newfangled gadgets out there, figuring out how to connect them all (or even what they all do for that matter) can be confusing. Here’s where DeviceKnit can help. “We are the neighborhood nerds,” CEO John Ganotis said. The site lets you pick what devices you would like to connect, then tells you what you need to connect them and where to get it. Pictures are provided in case, like me, you have no idea what different cables look like.
80 Degrees West Interior Design, Inc.: “An online design space providing a new and better way for do-it-yourself consumers to collect design inspiration, organize their decorating projects, and collaborate with professional interior designers.” Thinking of decorating? 80 Degrees West is a website that gives users the ability to organize design projects in an online notebook where they can store photos and ideas, get feedback from family and friends, and ask for professional input.
Black Locus: “A SASS cloud-computing platform that gives small and medium online retailers a similar level of analytical sophistication as larger e-tailers.” So you’re a small to medium web company with a need for market research. Welp, Black Locus is ready to give you the info you need for pricing, marketing, and inventory management. Users are able to implement recommendations with a click of a button and track the impact of each recommendation over time.
PhotoSynesi: “A premium online service delivering professional reviews and feedback to amateur photographers.” Digital cameras with auto focus lenses have led to an increased market of amateur photographers, many of whom spend money to attend workshops or similar events for professional critiques of their work. PhotoSynesi provides more readily available feedback at a lower cost.
Shoefitr: “Technology for online retailers to help customers find the correct size and best fitting shoe.” Not a lot of people buy shoes online. The reason? Shoes sizes are unreliable and the hassle of having to send a pair of shoes back that don’t fit outweighs the convenience of Internet shopping. Shoefitr wants to make the experience easier for the consumer and retailer by letting you choose a shoe size of what you want to buy based on what you already own. So, if you’re wearing a size 10 Nike and want to buy a New Balance, Shoefitr guides you through picking your exact shoe, then figures out what would be the best size of the new one. As one retailer said of Shoefitr “This is bitchin’.”
I was most impressed by DeviceKnit and Shoefitr. To start, I could see the utility of both without much effort. I don’t know what to do with half my electronics. I have returned shoes I bought online because they didn’t fit. I’m also a pushover for a good presentation. DeviceKnit and Shoefitr gave smart, interesting, and enjoyable overviews of their companies. The CEOs seemed generally enthusiastic about what they are doing, and they made me correspondingly excited.
Where the other companies fell short for me may have been because of consumer bias. I’m not a do-it-yourself type making 90K a year (80 Degrees West), I don’t have an online retail business (Black Locus), and even if I was an amateur photographer, I don’t think I’d pay for criticism unless I was trying to become a professional (PhotoSynesi). What I can say is they are certainly hitting niche markets and have the research to show that someone, somewhere is paying for these services. Whether they want to begin paying for online versions of those services is a consideration. I should also mention that 80 Degrees West and Black Locus both offer free accounts with limited, but useful options.
On a final, perhaps random note, I noticed that for whatever reason, smashing your company name together is all the rage with startups. DeviceKnit, PhotoSynesi, Shoefitr. Just saying.
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