Manchester tech start-up gets $2.3M boost from new backers, including Twitter, Kayak co-founders

Adored CEO Cory von Wallenstein outside Cafe la Reine during his app's Oct. 2014 launch. — Adored CEO Cory von Wallenstein outside Cafe la Reine during his app’s Oct. 2014 launch.

MANCHESTER, NH – Corey von Wallenstein knew he was on to something when he launched Adored last year, a brand loyalty app. Now the former Dyn executive has $2.3 million more reasons to spread the word about his big idea.

On June 8 von Wallenstein announced backing to the tune of $2.3 million from some of Boston’s most prominent investors, including Twitter exec Wayne Chang Kayak co-founder Paul English, among others, to further accelerate rapid adoption of the app by both consumers and merchants in the northeast.

“Brand loyalty can’t be taken for granted,” said von Wallenstein, CEO and co-founder of Adored. “It needs to be earned by offering each customer the best experience possible every time they interact with your brand.”

The adored app is not only valuable to consumers, delivering instant gratification just for having it on your phone and stepping foot into one of the participating businesses, but it’s also invaluable to those businesses.

The app collects analytics and does all the segmentation and consumer behavior profiling in the background. As a result, brands are able to offer the content their consumers actually want.

“These days, making great beer just gets you a seat at the table,” said Peter Egelston, founder of Smuttynose Brewing Company. “To compete, we need to create great experiences for consumers and at every level of the distribution chain. That is why we use Adored to help build stronger relationships and more remarkable experiences.”

Adored allows locations, like restaurants, bars, ski resorts, hotels, etc., to increase the lifetime value of their customers. All a customer needs to do is enter one of these establishments and Adored is activated offering rewards, exclusive real-time content and cross promotions. For brands, Adored gives them the opportunity to cut across the noise of social media and have a direct conversation with customers interested in their products and services, which is unlike any tool currently available.

One of Adored’s key differentiators is that unlike other iBeacon companies, while providing tremendous value for the vendors, Adored respects the consumer.

Apple's iBeacon technology makes it happen, like magic. — Apple’s iBeacon helps make the magic happen.

“iBeacons are a marketer’s dream but a consumer’s nightmare,” said von Wallenstein. “Consumers must be treated as first class citizens in both value and respect for their privacy. Since the app is entirely anonymous, with no consumer account creation required, consumer privacy is 100 percent preserved.”

Vendors who use the app in more than 60 locations are already seeing extraordinary results, like Cafe la Reine in Manchester, which has seen a 20 percent increase in visits per week.

“Our customers really love Adored,” said Alex Puglisi, owner of Cafe la Reine. “…Overall my relationship with my customers has gotten better from using Adored because we can engage in new and exciting ways and they can be more attune with what is happening at the cafe and the different offers they can get.”

Adored app icon.

This new funding round, which will be used to expand the Adored product and go to market teams, includes investment from Kepha Partners, Boston Seed Capital, Matrix Partners and Borealis Ventures as well as prominent metro Boston angel investors: Paul English and Bill O’Donnell from Blade, leading the charge on building great consumer-facing companies in Boston Jeremy Hitchcock, Kyle York, Matt Larson, Josh Delisle, and Gray Chynoweth, all past or present executives at Dyn in Manchester, where von Wallenstein was formerly CTO; Twitter exec Wayne Chang, along with Ron Martin, Laura Fitton, Joe Caruso, Michael Skok, John Pearce – all prominent figures in the metro Boston ecosystem.

“There are dozens if not hundreds of companies trying to do something similar – because it is such a great idea – but the reason we’re backing Adored is that Cory is assembling the team that is actually going to make this work,” said Paul English, CEO of Blade, and co-founder of Kayak.com. “We’re very excited about what they have done in Manchester and we know this is going to work in other places.”