It’s no denying that all social circles and daily routines reach a point of saturation. Meeting like-minded people and finding a community for your hobbies and interests as well for businesses looking for diversified target audience is an uphill task.
With an aim to revolutionise the way people and businesses connect with and discover each other,
WakoW App Technologies has launched the WAKOW application in India. Available on Apple iOS App store and Google Playstore, WakoW is targeted towards people who want to connect with like-minded people in their vicinity.
New Delhi based startup was founded in June 2016 by Bhavya Kohli, Manhar Oberoi, Arjun Oberai and Piyush Pandey. By using WakoW, a user gets the best of both the online experience of the convenience of befriending someone with the offline benefits of hanging out and pursuing activities of common interest, be it Sports, Adventure, Travel, Festivals or even Love! In a nutshell, WakoW encourages people to come out of their digital shells by using the same digital technology!
BWDisrupt team member Sujata Sangwan interacts with WakoW’s team and spoke to them
Unique key servicesWith WakoW, you can find activities even by Nationality. For instance, if you’re an Indian in Arkansas who likes to play cricket, then you can find fellow Indian cricket enthusiasts in your vicinity and organize cricket matches with them.
The app gives you absolute control over what you define your vicinity to be with a simple tap. Also, it allows you to ‘Wish List’ a partner. Like, if you want a jogging partner who’s not necessarily in your existing circle of friends, WakoW can help you find such people in your vicinity and connect There’s another feature called, ‘Personals’ – a kind of dating app which works only for the people with whom you are friends with. “With WakoW, you can anonymously express interest in someone that is on your friend list and if that person expresses interest back (also anonymously), then and only then do both of you get notified! Your secret is forever safe with us and there is no heartache or embarrassment involved in the entire process with them instantly.
Differentiation Currently there is not a single app that works on the same logic. There are apps for sports, carpools, dating, education etc. however no app addresses the problems that we do in totality. Hence, in our opinion we are not competing with any singular app out there; we are in fact telling users that downloading our app removes the need for multiple apps for essentially the same need.
Funding status We have concluded 2 rounds of early stage funding – 1st Raise was USD 22000 from a Taiwan Based company at a 2.2 Mil USD Valuation. 2nd Raise is USD 164000 (Media Spend Only) with a slightly higher valuation than first round.
Monetization The company monetizes through In-app Purchases, Advertisements, Revenue from organizing events/ Exhibitions, shows etc.
Future plans We are looking to raise another round of funds currently. We are looking to hit 50000 users plus around the six month mark. On the technological innovation front, the current version of the app is just a tip of the iceberg, we are only getting started and have tonnes up our sleeves. Keep watching this space to stay abreast with all the WakoW things that are happening. We are looking to breakeven in year 2017.
Market size The market potential for Wakow is on a global scale.
Challenges faced The Indian market has not matured yet for these kind of applications and endeavors such as ours are sort of leading the way to develop the market. It would have gained even more traction had we been based in the Americas or Europe. The response, however, so far has been very positive!
