Announcing 1517 Fund Investment: Upkeep
We're thrilled to be supporting Tiffany Faith Demers in her building Upkeep. Upkeep is a vertical SaaS solution for MedSpas to help them better book, organize, and solicit clients for a variety of services. Like Opentable for restaurants, Upkeep also works as a platform for consumers to connect with MedSpas in their areas for everything from laser hair removal to lip filler to botox injections and more complex consultations.
We originally supported Tiffany with one of our smaller angel checks while she was in the earliest stages of her company. When we write a check for a team at this stage, we take a bet on the founder, her ability to understand and navigate a market well, and what we believe will be her ability to build out a competent team. Since making that bet, we've been pleased to see Tiffany build out her team from herself and a group of outsourced engineers to now include a skilled a competent product manager, several skilled developers, and a network of MedSpa using the early version of the product.
Vertical SaaS generally has been an approach our portfolio companies have successfully targeted. Collecting a disparate group of SMBs or even networked franchises and affiliated businesses, getting them to use a software through a core product offering, and then building around a consumer element on top of that presents a strong opportunity to founders with a grasp of niche markets.
MedSpas pose an intriguing question to us, as they're a growing market with increased social acceptability due to the intersection of a few strong social forces like the rise of celebrity influencers, video social media focusing on products around MedSpas, and the acceptance of mobile-first solutions for both consumers and operators in similar markets. Tiffany knows her market well and shows an impressive ability to manage and build a team. We're thrilled to support her now and going forward.
Upkeep is live and taking books in the Los Angeles area and launching very shortly in the Miami and Austin areas. You can request concierge bookings at the Upkeep website.
The full Upkeep app experience will be available soon in the following markets:
- Austin
- Los Angeles
- Miami
- New York
- Dallas
- Houston
- Others TBA
You can sign up to get the app at the Upkeep website.
If you or a founder you know would like to chat with us about investment, please get in touch.
