STARTUP STAGE: SkipQ is an app for airport retail and restaurant companies

SkipQ

SkipQ describes itself as a journey retail market that connects airport retailers and passengers by way of its app. 

The Delaware, U.S.-based startup is addressing plenty of ache factors together with airport queues, lack of time and costly merchandise.

 

What’s your 30-second pitch to traders?

SkipQ is a deep tech, journey retail, cell app the place airport distributors and companies all over the world are merged on a single platform. We’re a world, journey retail market.

Describe each the enterprise and know-how elements of your startup.

At SkipQ, know-how is significant to our firm’s success. With AI, on-line human habits prediction, understanding when, why and for what value, we work onerous to find out when a buyer/passenger is keen to hit the “Purchase” or “Buy” button. Such information gives our suppliers great information of understanding the small print of when, what frequency and what amount of companies and merchandise may be offered. 

SkipQ positions itself as a direct hyperlink between airport journey retail retailers/companies and the shoppers/passengers. On one facet, we assist our enterprise companions acquire publicity of their merchandise regardless of the place the individual is flying from and touring to.

At the identical time, we provide our prospects the power to keep away from frustration at airports, with choices for advance  purchases of desired merchandise by SkipQ. We’re additionally proud that our app will supply communication within the native language of customers.  

Give us your SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Alternatives, Threats) evaluation of the corporate.

Beginning with threats, we see it within the extent of the mission. From our analysis, now we have not discovered anybody that has ever tried to do one thing like SkipQ. This may be seen as a menace as a result of there are such a lot of unknowns; be it from know-how, to partnerships, to easily operating such a enterprise.

Nevertheless, on the flip facet, this presents an incredible alternative. To be the primary to drive such a challenge efficiently is a once-in-a-lifetime alternative.

Every year tens and hundreds of hundreds of thousands journey by airplane. We aren’t trying to get all these vacationers onboard; we’re capturing for 1%. That’s sufficient for us. Being humble and understanding that not the whole lot belongs to us, along with our skilled and worldwide core workforce is an incredible power. And identical to earlier than, the opposite facet of this assertion is our weak point; we’re skilled however not skilled sufficient. Going world means we’re coping with totally different cultures, individuals and habits. This studying curve is our weak point, however we really feel it is simply corrected by our dedication and dedication to hear, be taught and be inclusive.

What are the journey ache factors you are attempting to alleviate from each the client and the business perspective?

Research have proven that persons are typically confronted with the next challenges when making an attempt to buy at airports: not sufficient time, lengthy queues, issues are too costly, can’t discover the shop/merchandise, unhelpful employees and poor signage. Having a cell app with discounted costs tackles these matters proper off the bat. You’ll be able to pre-order prematurely, keep away from lengthy queues and easily decide up and go.

Discounted costs supply individuals extra possibilities to spend their cash as a result of it makes objects extra inexpensive. UX/UI addresses the challenges of poor signage, finding merchandise and unhelpful employees. The business experiences challenges of window consumers, individuals dashing/passing by, merchandise staying on cabinets and difficult in-person conditions. SkipQ affords the business, airport distributors and shops one other venue, one other channel of visibility, to draw and promote their merchandise to individuals worldwide. SkipQ gives them with a platform for promoting and a capability to know prematurely how a lot merchandise is being offered, even earlier than somebody steps into the airport.

So you have obtained the product, now how will you get a lot of prospects?

Buyer acquisition at SkipQ is going on by journey entities corresponding to OTAs, bricks and mortar journey corporations, large consolidators, wholesalers and different journey company entities.

Inform us what course of you’ve gone by to ascertain a real want on your firm and the dimensions of the addressable market.

The concept got here when as a frequent traveler, passing by airports of all sizes, I typically skilled lengthy queues and/or lack of time to browse and store round. I had an thought for an answer – a single platform. This thought was quickly supported by studying official research, significantly these carried out yearly at greater than 300 worldwide airports all over the world.

Diving deeper within the airport setup, I typically found similarities whatever the continent. Moreover, after I journey internationally, like so many different vacationers, I fairly often have no less than one cease.  At a minimal, this implies I’ve to obtain three totally different airport apps (departure, stopover and arrival airport). I felt this didn’t make any sense. I knew there needed to be a greater resolution and SkipQ was fashioned.

As talked about, the market share we need to seize is 1%. Within the U.S. solely 20% of passengers who journey by air resolve to spend cash at airports. The typical quantity they spent is round $140. In 2019, there was nearly 1 billion passengers within the U.S. Which means 80% of individuals don’t spend any cash in any respect. Immediately, we take 1% of these 80%, multiply by $140 (for the U.S. solely) and we’re glad. Tomorrow, we sort out the remainder of the world.

How and when will you generate income?

We’ve got a commission-based mannequin the place for every offered merchandise by our app, SkipQ receives a proportion. We’ll begin making a living once we promote our first product.

What are the backgrounds and former achievements of the founding workforce?

The founding members have been a part of earlier profitable startups, had enterprise exits, have been a part of a core workforce bringing an organization on to NASDAQ and maintain high-level positions in world corporations. 

How have you ever addressed variety and inclusion with your online business?

Completely. Range is a given with all co-founders. Our workforce features a feminine and male from India, a male from the U.Okay. dwelling in Canada, and a Slovenian male dwelling within the U.S.

Inside the first full 12 months of being reside, SkipQ’s plans are to include into its platform “add-ons” for individuals with disabilities. We are going to associate (the place obtainable) with companies, which is able to convey merchandise to individuals whereas they’re ready at airports.

And sooner or later as we develop, hiring and bringing onboard sensible and dedicated people who symbolize individuals from all ethnic, social, financial, age and gender figuring out backgrounds is anticipated. That is inherent in SkipQ’s management, and we imagine it’s one of the simplest ways to create a optimistic and impactful distinction at work, inside the business and in our world neighbourhood.

What’s been essentially the most troublesome a part of founding the enterprise thus far?

I imagine there are two difficult elements when beginning an organization. First was speaking with potential enterprise companions, which we would have liked for operational causes. For instance, coping with world service provider processors and secondly, potential enterprise companions for our stock.

Not too long ago, I learn an article about how a significant duty-free chain misplaced greater than $38 billion of potential gross sales because of the very challenges SkipQ is addressing. Nevertheless, they see SkipQ as a possible menace and are very reluctant a few enterprise collaboration. The understanding and comprehension that no single participant in journey retail is ready to seize the whole market is lacking. I want there was more room for collaboration and an understanding that SkipQ can act as an necessary extra income supply.

Usually, journey startups face a reasonably powerful time making an impression – so why are you going to be one in all fortunate ones?

We aren’t the traditional journey startup. Our area of interest is journey retail on a world scale. We’re providing to attach the components of this monumental puzzle! 

A 12 months from now, what state do you assume your startup shall be in?

We imagine that SkipQ shall be experiencing mammoth enlargement. 

What’s your endgame? (Going public, acquisition, rising and staying personal, and so on.)

The imaginative and prescient is to stay a key stakeholder within the business as a world trendsetter. As individuals adopted the phrase “Google” as a part of their every day vocabulary, maybe whereas touring individuals will at some point merely say “I simply SkipQed”.