Comments Off on UK Startup: omoii (oh my) Is A Disruptive Search Engine INTERVIEW0LikeLike 2,132
The search engine is a hard nut to crack. Back in the earliest days of the internet most of us used infoseek, Lycos and then Yahoo. Then, as we all know, two Stanford students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin set out to create Google. Companies both big and small like Microsoft and Duck Duck Go, have all tried to compete with Google.
Some of those competitors have carved out a good niche, more so with Duck Duck Go rather than Bing. Others are trying to attack Google feature by feature. Some search engine competitors are looking to offer an alternative to the way Google serves up results. One of those companies is a startup in the UK called omoii (pronounced Oh My).
Omoii is hoping to go beyond the keyword and offer a more robust, and accurate list of search results. The hope is that by offering a better search results algorithm, web searching will be more targeted and offer advertisers a better audience.
We got a chance to talk with Steve Pritchard the founder and chief architect of this unique new search startup. Check out the interview below:
Sure sites look HotelTonight and Hotels.com are awesome places to shop for hotels while on the go by price and features. The problem is you have to toggle between their apps and your maps app when trying to plan out your stay. Even with the ability to drill down on the hotels.com app for iPhone and Android, by address, or venue, to get real distance and directions you need your map.
Mapov makes it easier to find hotels, and the best deals on hotels by adding a hotel layer on top of your existing Google Maps. They also harness the power of TripAdvisor for reviews, and multiple sites for the best rates. It’s like Kayak, meets hotels.com, meets priceline meets Google Maps.
We got a chance to talk with the team behind Mapov in the internet below.
Comments Off on Scottish Startup: Tummy With Mummy A Great Product For Tummy Time INTERVIEW0LikeLike 1,765
The first thing I thought when I heard the name of this Scottish startup is, what in the world is a Tummy With Mummy and what is Tummy Time. Well Tummy Time is the activity where babies essentially lay face down on the floor and scoot around on their tummy’s or play with toys in this position.
It turns out that Tummy Time is an essential part of the development of a baby’s motor skills and the most critical time for this to occur is between zero to 6 months.
Well sometimes Tummy Time doesn’t work out. Parents are often scared that the baby will hurt themselves on a hard wood floor and sometimes it doesn’t really look comfortable to see a new-born facedown, you worry if they are ok.
Tummy With Mummy is a patented product made by Scotish startup called TWM Productions. Tummy with Mummy is a baby seat that allows baby’s to play in the Tummy position with a parent or loved one or by themselves. It keeps the baby’s in the best position for Tummy Time and then it folds completely flat for storage and to fit in the trunk of a car.
TWM Productions is actually part of the Entrepreneurial Spark program which provides resources to growing startups in the UK. Tummy With Mummy’s co-founder Dave Abrahams says that Entrepreneurial Spark actually instills North American values in some of the UK startups.
Check out our interview Abrahams below. He tells us all about this new startup that was actually followed by his mum and is now a family business.
Simple is good, right? If that’s the case then you’re going to like the ease and simplicity built into UK gift giving startup Parcel Genie. Sure it’s got a “blah” name but remember Parcel may be much more glamorous in the UK, you know the way they add that “u” to colour it makes it more colourful (and boy does spell check hate it).
Parel Genie is available on iOS, Android and even Windows Phone 7. It makes sending gifts to your friends as easy as sending instant messages and texts.
“We are pioneering the concept of gifting as communication,” says John Taylor, CEO and co-founder of ParcelGenie. “With our service, people can respond to news from friends, co-workers and loved ones — an achievement at work, a personal goal achieved, a quick thank-you, or someone not feeling well — with an immediate, low-cost real little gift and personal message. ParcelGenie closes the gap between thought and action, making it easy to do something meaningful to deepen emotional connections with the people in our lives.”
With Parcel Genie you send small little gifts, almost like chotzkes to your friends and family via their mobile number. If you know their actual address you can enter it for delivery. If you don’t have their address or don’t have time to fumble with it, they’ll receive a text message notifying them that you’ve sent this great little gift and prompt them for their delivery address.
In Europe the service is called Parcel Genie and there’s a Parcel Genie app in the iTunes App Store, Google Play Store and whatever it is they call the app store in Windows Phone 7. In the United States and other countries Parcel Genie is actually a white labeled partner service for some of the major e-commerce sites out there. If you see a “send an instant gift” or a “ping” button it takes you to the Parcel Genie service on behalf of that partner.
The company’s website says they are totally international and are opening an office in California. Their management team includes Sir Chris Powell, an actual knight, who achieved knighthood for his role in British advertising.
Their CEO is Dr.John Taylor, who is an actual doctor ;). Taylor actually thought up the idea for Parcel Genie back in 2006. The management team rounds out with CTO Dr. Richard Tolcher and Bruce Garvey (who is a real Bruce).
What we like about this startup:
Well sending vouchers, gift cards and other executables seems so generic. Sending real presents with flower arrangements and cards is so, well 2006. We like the immediacy of Parcel Genie. We also like the fact that Parcel Genie eliminates the problem of “I would send someone a gift but I don’t have their address”.
Exploring their gift store a little more gives way to cool key chains, coffee mugs and even boxes of Jelly Belly’s, I mean who wouldn’t appreciate a box of genuine Jelly Belly’s.
Comments Off on UK Startup: FlavrBox Puts Flavor In The Subscription Box0LikeLike 2,366
It’s no secret that one of the biggest newly created spaces for startups is the subscription box. We’ve brought you stories about a variety of box subscriptions like Chicago’s Klutch Club; popular New York beauty box, Birch Box; and even Houston based crafts subscription box startup, Whimseybox.
Across the pond the subscription box is catching on too and in even more new and exciting ways. Flavrbox actually ships the best in nonperishable food items and ingredients to their subscribers. We love food that’s one of the reasons this startup caught our eye, but also the innovative approach to tackling the problem of how do you ship food to subscribers.
I mean how much soup and crackers can one person eat? Well we found out that FlavrBox is way more than just soup and crackers. They have an innovative approach to the subscription box in their flavor packed food boxes that they send through the post (British for mail).
Are they sending tea and crumpets through the post? Find out below in our interview with Flavrbox, a tasty new British startup
Kyle
The search engine is a hard nut to crack. Back in the earliest days of the internet most of us used infoseek, Lycos and then Yahoo. Then, as we all know, two Stanford students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin set out to create Google. Companies both big and small like Microsoft and Duck Duck Go, have all tried to compete with Google.
