Tech roundup: Curbside rolls into Chicago, Foxtrot's new brick-and-mortar, and more

by Sam Dewey
November 4, 2015

Palo Alto’s Curbside rolls into Chicago

Say hello to Curbside, an app that lets users browse and shop for groceries they can then pick up at their convenience.The app and service is totally free, and the company said there won’t be any markup on store prices. Curbside is currently launching at 10 Chicagoland Targets and plans to expand its presence in the market as we turn to enter 2016.

“Curbside will make the shopping experience for Chicagoland residents faster and easier than ever before,” a company spokesperson told Built In Chicago. “It allows consumers to shop directly from their mobile phones and pick up right in front of the store without having to find items on shelves, wait in long checkout lines or deal with the hassles of parking.” [Curbside expands drive-up service to 10 Chicago-area Target stores: Chicago Tribune]

 

Foxtrot rakes in $1.1M and opens new West Loop store

Chicago-based Foxtrot, which launched in 2013 to curate and deliver selections of food, drinks, and everyday items, announced it has raised a $1.1 million seed round of financing. Those funds find their roots in an influential squad of angel investors, including ChicagoNEXT chairman Mark Tebbe, Trunk Club co-founder and CFO Kevin Price, and Apex Venture Partners’ Lon Chow. In addition to their seed-stage funding, the company also debuted a new brick-and-mortar storefront at 1019 W. Lake St. in the West Loop. The 1,700 square-foot store will offer the same selection of on-demand goods available on its mobile app. [Built In Chicago]

 

AMA and MATTER introduce new simulation space for physician/entrepreneur interaction

On Wednesday night, the opening of the AMA Interaction Studio at the Merchandise Mart’s healthtech incubator, MATTER, was celebrated by local physicians and entrepreneurs. The goal of the studio is to foster a collaborative environment where healthcare leaders and entrepreneurs can work together to create new healthtech technology.  

 

Recruiting guru Yello nabs $5M Series B to scale operations

Chicago-based Yello, a company that develops recruitment software and talent relationship management tools, today announced it has secured a $5 million Series B. Yello CEO and co-founder Jason Weingarten said the funding will primarily be used to scale operations. The round was led by Argentum Group, a growth-stage private equity and venture capital firm based in New York. Chicago’s First Analysis, which led the company’s $6 million Series A last year, also participated. [Built In Chicago]

 

1871 named top university-affiliated incubator in the US

1871, Chicago’s celebrated Merchandise Mart-based tech hub, this week topped a new list of university-affiliated business incubators. The comprehensive study, which was produced by Swedish research firm UBI Global, found that 1871 ranked 1st in the United States and 2nd in North America among other business incubators that work with universities. Globally, more than 400 incubators across 70 countries were considered and assessed. [Built In Chicago]

 

Title III is approved: What that means for your startup

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved Title III of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act on Friday, allowing non-accredited investors the opportunity to participate in equity crowdfunding. That means, when Title III goes into effect in 90 days, everyday citizens will legally have the right to invest in any private startup. This may not seem revolutionary given the amount of crowdfunding websites currently available, but —under the new law— millions of non-accredited investors will be allowed to enter the new capital market online, effectively shifting the venture capital landscape. [Built In Chicago]

 

Snapchat calls on Chicago’s STATS to enhance mobile app experience

Last week, Chicago-based STATS announced that it has entered a partnership with Snapchat in order to allow fans of the mobile app to include real-time score updates to their Snaps and Stories. Snapchat’s “Geolifter” product is powered by STATS and aims to add a new level of engagement and excitement. “This partnership represents a fantastic opportunity for STATS to expand its user experience by engaging sports fans with STATS’ data in real-time via one of the world’s most widely used social platforms,” said STATS Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing Greg Kirkorsky in a statement.

 

Giftfluence launches to help charities raise more money

This week, a new Chicago company called Giftluence launched with a new approach to raising money for charities — and just in time for the holidays. The company, which partners with retailers like Best Buy and Groupon (and even the Chicago Bears) has about 70 partners, each of whom has committed to donating a portion purchases facilitated by the startup to charity. [Meet Giftfluence, the Chicago Startup That Raises Money for Charities Through Online Shopping: Chicago Inno]

 

Rent Like A Champion joins group of Chicago companies to find success of ‘Shark Tank’

Rent Like A Champion, a company that helps groups of college sports fans find and book accommodation on campus during games, dove into ABC’s ‘Shark Tank’ last week and emerged victorious. Investors Chris Sacca and Mark Cuban agreed to invest $200,000 in total in exchange for for 10% equity in the startup.

 

SIM Partners unveils new suite of features

Chicago’s SIM Partners announced a new suite of features for its marketing automation platform, Velocity. The new feature set, called Velocity Insights, arms enterprise marketers with demographic and web analytics to enhance their location marketing. The insights also include “listing health,” which measures a brand’s visibility across a market.

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