Retail technology startup oneKIN Inc. hopes its selection into an incubator program staged by financial services giant Mastercard (NYSE: MA) helps accelerate its growth as it gears up to release new technology for retailers.
St. Louis-based oneKIN has been chosen for the Mastercard Start Path in Solidarity program, an incubation program designed to advance early stage fintech startups led by underrepresented founders. Through the program, oneKIN has access to networking, technology resources and mentorship.
Founded in 2017 by CEO Marvin Francois and Chief Marketing Officer Jennifer Gomez, oneKIN has developed technology to help retailers sell their products. It has created an online marketplace for diverse retailers and plans soon to launch a livestreaming shopping app. OneKIN has been backed locally by Arch Grants and Capital Innovators.
Francois said oneKIN’s participation in the Mastercard program provides it with access to a broad range of resources, including networking opportunities and technical support.
“When I tell you they open up the company to you and support you, literally a couple of nights of ago, I was meeting with one of their technical teams in India at midnight just to get more technical support,” he said.
Francois said oneKIN would like to use the Mastercard program to form corporate partnerships, adding that the startup would like to create a longer term relationship with MasterCard.
For oneKIN, its participation in the Mastercard Start Path in Solidarity program comes as the startup prepares this fall to roll out its new livestream shopping app for retailers, technology that Francois describes as as a "modern day, AI-powered QVC for small businesses,” comparing it to the television shopping Channel QVC (NYSE: QVCD).
“As a local merchant who would historically be limited to 2-mile foot traffic, you’re now getting access to a national and potentially global audience via this virtual platform where you can engage with them in real-time as if they were in your physical brick-and-mortar (store) and with the simple click of a button, they can buy your product,” Francois said.
Francois said oneKIn has piloted the technology and has been fine-tuning it to roll it out broadly for retailers. He said the startup is also in conversations with a couple of undisclosed corporate partners to launch it with them in the upcoming holiday season.
As it rolls out its new technology, oneKIN expects to grow its headcount. It currently has eight full- and part-time employees, but is currently recruiting engineers and for marketing roles. He said the company could expand to nine full-time and 10 part-time employees by year’s end.
