It’s not often that a 20-minute Office Hours session with TC Staffers turns into a spot on the Disrupt Battlefield stage, but for Buyou, it just so happens to be the case.
The virtual mall app, founded in May 2012, is about as straightforward as possible. You download the Buyou app from the App Store, and you’re instantly teleported to a mall, complete with all your favorite brands and storefronts for easy one-stop shopping.
It sounds like every other shopping app out there, but it’s actually quite unique in that it learns your taste and curates the Buyou mall accordingly, and it even shares those preferences with its brand retail partners, letting them be more effective in targeting you for the future.
We first met founder Krish Jayaram at an Office Hours meeting in NY, which led him to present at a pitch-off in NYC. (Yep, just like the pitch-off we held a few weeks ago.) After winning top prize at our mini-meetup, the Buyou team went on to apply for Disrupt, getting a choice spot on the Startup Alley floor. From there, things only got better when Buyou was notified that they were a fan favorite, and would have six minutes to present their product in the Battlefield competition.
“It was a whirlwind,” said Jayaram.
The company has since grown from 10 storefronts to 45 today, with an additional 130 retailers signed on to join the app. Buyou is currently working on partnerships with big-box retailers which should allow for in-app purchases, and a revamp of the app to version 2.0.
Disrupt NY is set to be one of the best Disrupts yet, with over 30 companies participating in the Battlefield, and hundreds of startups launching their products in the Startup Alley. But only one will walk away with the Disrupt Cup, joining the likes of Dropbox, GetAround, Yammer, and Mint. But it’s not all about the Battlefield. The three-day conference will include some of the biggest names in tech as speakers and panelists, such as Fred Wilson, Ron Conway, and David Lee. If past Disrupts are any indication, it should be an amazing three days. To get involved in the Hackathon, Startup Alley, Battlefield, or simply attend the event, head over here.
