Barcode Hero is an iPhone app from Kima Labs that makes in-store shopping social by letting users scan product barcodes to earn points, ranks, and rewards. Scanning builds a product database the company uses to personalize recommendations and encourage user contributions such as reviews and recommendations. The app gamifies shopping with category-based points, dukedoms and kingships to drive engagement and a social graph. It also provides price comparisons through a deal with PriceGrabber while positioning itself as the recommendation layer for in-store shopping. Founders Blake Scholl and Jason Crawford are Amazon veterans who previously worked at Pelago (makers of Whrrl). The team plans to expand the app to other platforms beyond iPhone quickly and to focus first on building the social graph and user experience before pursuing coupons heavily. The company says brands and merchants have already shown interest in the product's monetization potential.

Total raised

$1M

Funding rounds

1

Latest round

Seed

Latest activity

Aug 2010