This year, several Boston startups have decided to call it quits — we've been tracking five of them, including a special case: Bridj.
Here are the Boston startups that shut down in 2017:
• Date My Wardrobe, a fashion rental startup founded by Amrita Aviyente, shut down in March because it was unable to make its business “financially viable,” according to its website. When it re-launched in 2016, it pivoted away from the peer-to-peer rental model that got it started in 2013. The latest iteration of the app, which we covered in May 2016, focused on creating a rental marketplace for local fashion designers that also let you buy the clothes.
• Transportation startup Bridj shut down in April after a deal with a major car company fell through, but this was not the end of the story. In October, the company announced its resurrection in Australia, where Bridj plans to relaunch after its assets were acquired by Australian transportation operator Transit Systems.
• Cure Forward, which was supposed to be a “Tinder for researchers and patients,” shut down its 30-person Cambridge-based firm in June, BBJ reported. CEO Frank Ingari told BBJ that the company wasn’t able to raise a Series B funding round: “Our burn rate was substantial… it’s a classic startup story. It’s sad because we were starting to help a lot of patients.” In 2015, Cure Forward raised $15 million Series A from Apple Tree.
• In August, GoPapaya - an iPhone and Android app that let you find last-minute reservations and deals at restaurants - declared it game over. Founder Marik Marshak told BostInno while the startup had the technology in place, good user feedback and nearly 100 restaurants on the platform, the main obstacle was the cost of customer acquisition. Marshak added he is now looking for a senior engineering leadership role at a fast-paced company.
• Lexumo, an Internet of Things security startup spun out of Draper Labs, shut down in September, Xconomy reported. "We needed to renegotiate the terms of our IP/licensing agreement to conserve capital and make the company more attractive to future investors and potential acquirers," CEO Dan McCall told Xconomy. "This entailed a significant effort that I’m sad to say did not succeed."
If you think there’s a startup missing from this list, email me at lmaffei@americaninno.com.
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that a startup called Besomebody shut down. Besomebody is still operating, but the company sold its app in February roughly a month after shutting it down. The company is now focused on skills training.
