Elevator Pitch: FanGo
FanGo makes a sports app that lets fans order food from the concession stand using their phones. Can it raise $435,000?
Anna Knott
Mobile Munchies FanGo founder Collin Wallace (left) and CEO Jim Marzullo want to branch out.
FOUNDER: Collin Wallace
LOCATION: Chicago
EMPLOYEES: 6
LAUNCHED: 2008
2010 REVENUE: $5,000
2011 PROJECTED REVENUE: $250,000
APP DOWNLOADS: 1,200
COST FOR USERS: 49 cents to 99 cents per order
VENUES: Eight stands in four stadiums in Kentucky and Georgia
COST FOR VENDORS: $2,500 minimum, the price to outfit two stands
PREVIOUS FUNDING: $563,000, in a round led by Sandbox Industries
FUNDING SOUGHT: $435,000
The Pitch: "FanGo is a mobile app that lets sports fans skip the lines at stadium concession stands and have food and drinks delivered to their seats. Users enter their seat locations, browse menu items, and order with their credit cards. It's good for customers, because they can order from a concession stand's entire menu instead of being limited to what's on the hot dog guy's tray. It's good for concession stands, because FanGo increases order sizes: Our average user spends twice as much as the customer who walks to the stand. And FanGo is a lot cheaper than the $4,000 hand-held point-of-sale devices some stadiums are already using to offer in-seat delivery. We're raising money to hire more developers and adapt our technology for other markets, such as hotels and airports."
The Experts Weigh In
Provide Delivery People
I'd love to use FanGo, but I have some issues with investing in it. If it takes off, concession stands will have to hire a lot of delivery people. That's a hard sell. FanGo could consider providing the delivery people to the arenas—and charge more for its service. A lot of businesses now are a combination of technology and people. I don't know if FanGo has enough growth potential for VCs, but it could be a fit for an angel investor.
DEEPAK KAMRA, general partner
Canaan Partners, Menlo Park, California
Go After the Whole Stadium
The stadium world is insular and hard to break into. FanGo needs stadiums pushing this on the JumboTron, but they won't do that if the service is limited to certain concession stands. FanGo's strategy needs to be stadiumwide implementation. The company should target smaller venues first and gather metrics to show that the service is driving sales. As an investor, I'd rather see deep customer engagement in a few stadiums than limited engagement in a lot of venues.
JOE MEDVED, principal
Softbank Capital, Boston
Focus on Upselling
FanGo's first priority should be upselling its existing market. If a customer has gone to the trouble of downloading the FanGo app, there are 20 other things you could sell to that person, such as statistics on the event, merchandise, and more tickets. I think it's too early for an investment. FanGo needs more traction with customers and stadiums.
PATRICK LEE, partner
Pinnacle Ventures, Palo Alto, California
