Whimsy is the only introduction "dating" app that allows you to meet people in real life, right now. Unlike endless swiping and chatting on traditional dating apps, we help you make an instant connection with someone near you so you can meet face-to-face immediately. We focus on facilitating introductions in the present moment when you're already out and looking your best. Our geo-location technology heat map and quick chat feature makes it easy to find and vet people who are nearby, ready to meet, and receptive to a warm human connection. With Whimsy, no more wasted time chatting online or stressful blind dates - just quick, authentic introductions leading to real life interactions. We save you time, take the sting out of in person rejection, and make the first move fun again! Whimsy is the ice-breaker you need to make meeting new people easier, less stressful, and fun.
Whimsy began as a spark of inspiration - the desire to make real-life connections easier and less awkward. The founders realized that despite the proliferation of dating apps, people were still intimidated by approaching strangers in public. There had to be a better way. After months of research and development, Whimsy was born - a revolutionary new app that facilitated organic meetings in the moment. The brand's unique narrative is one of empowerment and human connection. Whimsy believes that real chemistry can't be forced or manufactured through an app. It has to happen naturally, face-to-face. By showing you who's close and available, Whimsy gives you the confidence to walk up to that cutie at the coffee shop or strike up a chat with the hottie at the bar. No pressure, no expectations - just an easy, breezy way to say "Hey There" to someone intriguing. At its core, Whimsy wants to bring people together, not keep them glued to their phones. Meeting someone new should feel fun and exciting, not anxious and full of dread. With its innovative matching technology and focus on in-person interactions, Whimsy delivers the spark that's missing from swipe-based apps. Its bold vision is a world with less loneliness and more human connection.
Our business model is another differentiating factor in dating apps, we aren’t trying to launch this nationwide. The key to success is starting locally on the ground and scaling to other cities. The plan is to start in our hometown of Chicago and scale to other large cities like NYC, LA, Austin, Miami, Vegas, Denver, Nashville, DC, and Charlotte. We will hire several influencers and “sales people” to be out in the hot areas in Chicago getting them to sign up to our app. We will rely heavily on word of mount and our refer a friend program, for every 30 users one gets to sign up, they get a free month paid subscription. We know the key to success is a large database so we will focus on growing that database quickly in Chicago first. We will have three monthly subscription models, free, basic ($9.99) and gold ($16.99). Free has limited features, like can’t see the heat map, can only message 3 people in a day's time and can only chat 10 minutes, hoping this will push them into a monthly paid subscription.
We will host local VIP parties for our subscribers. These parties may be in tandem with advertisers and/or local partnerships with local hot spots. For example, Tito's Vodka has a new vodka they want to introduce and get the word out. We'd invite our subscribers to come to XYZ bar and try out Tito's Vodka with our party invite feature in our app. We also can push ads to a targeted group of people on the app via their in app notifications.
While Whimsy is new, our team is not new to business. The three partners, Steve Weiss, Jens Bogehegn, and Mandy Rogers, of Whimsy are the same people behind Zacuto, the standard in the film/video industry for camera accessories for over 20 years.
Steve, founder of Zacuto, has been shooting, photographing, directing, producing, editing and inventing products since 1983. Steve has created over 800 commercial, corporate and fashion videos, as well as seven web series, documentaries and dozens of livestream shows. He has many awards for both product design and filmmaking, including five Emmy awards. He’s currently heading up a new product development division for Zacuto, creating products outside of the film industry, including consumer products, and he recently launched a Zacuto IOS app called, “At Your FingerTips.”
Jens’ key credits include: The Untouchables (TV), Wayne’s World II, U.S. Marshalls, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Watch It, and Cosmic Voyage (IMAX). Jens has been Steve Weiss’ cinematographer since 1984, and has many awards for both product design and filmmaking including four Emmy awards. Jens and Steve became partners at Zacuto in 2000. Jens was critical in moving Zacuto from a production house, to a rental house, to a camera accessory manufacturer, and now into consumer products and apps. Jens is the final say in the Zacuto products design division, and is developing many new products every year. As head of operations, Jens oversees everything related to products, apps and their deployment.
Mandy began working at Zacuto in 2008. At Zacuto, Mandy started out by joining in product meetings and soon began to brainstorm ideas for new products. After only four short years, Mandy worked her way all the way up from an entry-level position to Vice President of Sales and Marketing and finally to Director of Sales and Marketing. Mandy became a partner at Zacuto in 2022 and now runs its entire business operations.