Since we founded Zippin, we have witnessed significant change in the overall checkout-free market, and of course, the world at large. While Zippin’s cashierless technology has been evolving, we have seen wider demand and adoption of checkout-free technology against the backdrop of the pandemic. This demand is coming not only from convenience stores and grocery retail, but also from event venues, sports arenas, campus foodservice operations, airports, and other places where people gather and need to be quickly served.
As we plan for the next phase of growth for Zippin, I am excited to share that we have added OurCrowd to our list of investors. OurCrowd is a global venture investing platform that empowers institutions and individuals to invest in emerging companies. It democratizes the startup investing process by giving individual investors the ability to invest in private companies alongside professional VCs.
Here are a few reasons why I believe that Zippin and OurCrowd will be a powerful team, and most importantly why I feel that the democratization of investing is so important.
The Future of Checkout-free Retail is Bright
I believe that Zippin is the future of checkout-free retail, and we expect to see significant growth in the near future as we continue to ramp up our partnerships with retailers and venue operators. The pandemic has accelerated the evolution of frictionless shopping and contactless experiences. As the economy continues to reopen and the pandemic hopefully continues to subside, all of the elements are in place to help Zippin have an even brighter future.
Zippin needs to continue to get access to investment capital as we continue to scale up our business operations and grow into new markets. We believe that OurCrowd deserves to be part of that future growth.
Individual People See the Value of Cashierless Technology
Cashierless technology - like Zippin’s - is something that is easily understood and appreciated by people from all walks of life, even if they don’t consider themselves “experts.” Everyone has had the experience of waiting too long at a checkout line, struggling to find an item in the store aisles, or otherwise having an inefficient, frustrating trip as a shopper.
Checkout-free retail can transform the everyday shopper’s retail experience in ways that are easy to visualize. When people hear about checkout-free stores, or see Zippin’s platform in action, they want this technology. They can see the value proposition, perhaps more than some other categories of early-stage startup technology.
COVID-19 has also caused many people to re-evaluate their everyday shopping habits and start to demand a more frictionless and convenient experience. This makes Zippin the kind of company that a lot of individual people might want to invest in; investing in Zippin is a way of helping to bring about a brighter, customer-friendly future for retail.
For all of these reasons, I am personally passionate about giving individual investors the chance to be part of the future of checkout-free retail. Ever since the launch of the first Zippin-powered store in San Francisco three years ago, we’ve heard from many people that they love what we are doing and want to support our mission of accelerating the adoption of checkout-free technology.
Democratizing Startup Investments
As a private company, it has traditionally not been easy to accept investments from individual investors. Usually, investment in early stage startups like Zippin has been limited to venture capital (VC) funding and angel investors. This has the effect of keeping everyday people from being able to share in the investment gains of successful startups.
But now, we have OurCrowd. We are glad to be part of OurCrowd’s mission of opening up cutting-edge startup investment opportunities to individual investors. OurCrowd helps people invest in pre-vetted startups and exclusive venture funds, giving individual investors the ability to capitalize on opportunities that might otherwise be limited to angel investors and VC firms. Zippin is proud to be part of OurCrowd’s portfolio of investment opportunities.
To learn more about OurCrowd and how you can invest in Zippin, click here.
