September 2018 Gap Funding: Moments
Nowadays, going out to a bar with friends seems more like a chore than a fun activity. You have to wait in line to get in, wait at the bar to order drinks and then wait for the bartender to swipe your card and bring you a voucher to sign. It’s a timely process, but for Moments co-founder Julian Safford, it presented an opportunity to create a convenient payment application that allows customers to pay for drinks at local bars with a smart wristband — one that removes the need for cash or credit card transactions and functions by connecting directly to your phone. This system not only saves time for consumers, but it allows venues to spend less time reconciling the books at the end of the night.
As a graduate of Northeastern University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, Julian got the idea for his venture from a trip to Europe, where people were using RFID systems to open their hotel rooms and he realized nothing existed to cater to the nightlife industry. Moments was born about a year ago, and today is ready for beta testing, prototyping, and initial go-to-market launch. Even though Julian and his co-founder Justin are still working full-time towards their careers as engineers, they are ready to start devoting more time to Moments and will begin sourcing clients in 2019.
When asked how Moments was going to use its gap funding, Safford explained the need to mass produce wristbands in order to launch an initial go-to-market campaign. While the initial plan was to launch in local Boston metro area bars, Moments has since pivoted to targeting smaller bars in college areas before expanding into larger businesses. Other plans for the gap funding include bringing on additional team members and developing a fleshed out marketing plan.
Safford’s experience with IDEA began when he had already graduated from Northeastern. As an alumnus looking to launch his venture, he sought out IDEA on after a friend recommended it. Moments was able to go through the ready, set, go stages in a matter of months and today is a funded venture ready to revolutionize the nightlife payments industry. His advice for ventures going through the process? Take advantage of the support given to your venture and attend all of the networking and partnership events — your network can make or break the success of your venture!
To learn more about Moments, you can contact Julian Safford at safford.j@husky.neu.edu.
If you are interested in starting your own venture, please visit this page and sign up for the next New Venture Orientation.
IDEA Gap Funding is a non-equity educational grant available to ventures in the GO stage of IDEA’s process. Applicants may apply on a bi-monthly basis where their business plans are reviewed by IDEA’s student Investment Committee upon being selected to pitch plans to IDEA’s Advisory Board. Applicants may receive up to $10,000 in funding.
