Shelfbucks Again Recognized For Innovation With 'A-List' Award For Austin-Based Startups
Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce and South by Southwest Interactive recognize Shelfbucks as among most promising, fundable emerging companies
Technology start-up Shelfbucks Inc. today announced it was named to the prestigious 2013 Fall Austin A-List of promising new start-up companies from the Austin area. The award recognizes Shelfbucks as being among the region’s most innovative and fundable emerging companies.
Introduced in October, Shelfbucks has launched a new smartphone-based technology that enables brands to communicate special offers, coupons and other information directly to consumers in the retail setting. The new Shelfbucks technology also helps brands and retailers reduce showrooming, gain actionable data on shopper behavior and increase sales opportunities.
Now in its third year, the Austin A-List recognizes the area’s most promising startups in three investment stage categories: emerging, growth and scale, representing key sectors of innovation, including enterprise big data, social, health and entertainment.
“Being named to the Austin area’s A-List is a tremendous honor for all of us on the Shelfbucks team,” said Erik McMillan, the company’s CEO. “We are confident that Shelfbucks is poised for rapid growth and very much appreciate this recognition from the Austin business and technology communities.”
This is the second innovation award for Shelfbucks since its launch. Last month, Shelfbucks was named a winner of the “DEMO God” award at the DEMO Fall 2013 conference, an exclusive competition renowned for launching innovative new technology products.
Shelfbucks uses unique devices, installed on retailers’ store shelves, to provide an enhanced shopping experience for customers. A shopper browsing a product area interacts with the Shelfbucks device using a smartphone, and can immediately download information, coupons or other real-time offers on nearby products. The shopper can immediately redeem the special offers, thus eliminating the need for additional online research or showrooming, while saving time and enjoying a superior shopping experience.
“Most innovation in retail today is focused on ecommerce, yet over 90 percent of retail sales still take place in brick-and-mortar stores,” said McMillan. “Paper coupons, in-store signage and other traditional strategies for increasing in-store sales are expensive, take months to plan and even more time to measure and adjust. Shelfbucks applies the Google Adwords model to the retail shelf by delivering optimized offers to in-store shoppers precisely when and where they are making purchase decisions. At the same time, Shelfbucks provides retailers with real-time data that allows them to immediately adjust their strategies for increased sales,” he said.
Shelfbucks is currently in discussions with multiple leading retailers about its enterprise technology.
Prior to launching Shelfbucks, McMillan founded BestFit Mobile, developers of advanced iOS and Android mobile apps for leading international retailers and enterprises. He is supported by an executive team of similarly successful entrepreneurs and retail technology specialists from Dell, Mail.com, Groupon, CompuCom, HomeAway and Demand Media.
Shelfbucks attracted seed funding from a high-profile group of executives representing a diverse mix of technology and retail backgrounds, including Appcelerator, Bazaarvoice, Black Locus, Capital Factory, Google, HomeAway and ShopperTrak.
About Shelfbucks
Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Shelfbucks develops and markets smartphone-based solutions designed to reinvent how consumers interact with product brands in retail stores. Shelfbucks enables optimized distribution of special offers, coupons and other information directly to potential customers. Shelfbucks also helps brands and retailers reduce showrooming, gain actionable data on shopper behavior and increase sales opportunities. For more information, visit www.shelfbucks.com.