UK startup Yapster has raised over £2.6m as the company looks to deliver on its ambitious growth plans for 2020 and beyond.
Yapster is building the ‘mobile inbox’ for the world’s two billion deskless workers who don’t access company IT systems on a computer.
Founded in 2015 with a focus on customer-facing industries, Yapster’s instant messaging and social sharing platform is now being used to deliver business improvement at the front line for brands including Ann Summers, Brewdog, Caffè Nero, Safestore and Wagamama.
The company expects to finish 2019 with more than 150% year-on-year growth in customers under contract and a 30-strong team (up from 15 this time last year). Funding was secured from private investors, with a focus on continuing to add industry and functional expertise to guide the team as they prepare for rapid growth across product development, sales and marketing.
“We’ve had a good year, but the high calibre of investors we’ve been able to attract to the business is more testament to the huge opportunity ahead of us,” said Yapster co-founder and CEO Rob Liddiard.
“The iPhone is 12 years old, yet large sections of the working population are chronically under-served by technology. We’re here to change that and our challenge now is to show the wider market what our customers already know – that fast, effective front line communication can be truly transformative.”
“I know from my 25 years in retail and hospitality that effective communication in stores or restaurants, and company-wide engagement, are big challenges,” added investor Nick Carter.
“When aligned, the positive impact on morale, staff retention and financial results can be huge. It seemed to me that there is a massive opportunity for Yapster’s offer of speedy, secure mobile messaging – the product-market fit was obvious when you look at their recent traction and the brands they’re already working with. Plus, the senior team have a nice balance of skills and I believe they are capable of building something special which has the potential to travel internationally.”