We've all been there. You're making plans for a Friday night, and at a loss for where to go — or you want to ensure wherever you do go has the type of music and venue you want.
Enter Polk County-based Videloo, which lets venues livestream through its app.
“You get on the app and say, I want to listen to some jazz," CEO Jerry Dimanche explains. "You put in Tampa, and you’ll be able to see in real time livestream every venue that’s playing jazz at that time.”
Business owners can put up an iPhone, iPad or Apple computer and livestream the venue through the app, which launches this fall.
This will allow users to see exactly what the place looks like before they go.
“I’ve been to places when you get there and it’s not what you expect,” Dimanche said. “But you can see where you’re going before you get there, so you don’t waste time and energy.”
The idea for Videloo came to Dimanche back in 2009. But it really came together during the pandemic, Dimanche said, addingthat the app will be useful to many different types of businesses as they reopen.
“This is a time to revamp and Videloo allows companies to do that and get their marketing back again,” Dimanche said.
Entertainment venues, restaurants, and resorts immediately come to mind, but Videloo is also beneficial to real estate businesses, allowing them to livestream property to potential clients who are out of state or don’t feel comfortable traveling.
Videloo can even be used for churches to inform churchgoers who are new to an area, Dimanche said.
He works on the company’s executive team with three others — Tanaka Tava, Lendl Charles and Emanual Scott — who came together in October 2020 to develop Videloo. The company has four other employees and the entire team is working virtually.
The Mulberry-based company is bootstrapped right now, but it is seeking investors.
The app will launch for Apple devices on Sept. 10. Videloo will likely be primarily used by Gen Z at first, Dimanche said, but expects other generations will follow.
And Videloo will focus on the United States initially, but the company plans to have a presence in South America and Central America eventually, he said.
Dimanche is hopeful Videloo will take off by this time next year, predicting over 20 million active users.
He said the company plans to keep up with the expected demand by adding offices in Miami, which will become the new headquarters, and potentially Los Angeles. The Mulberry office will remain active.
And new features in the app will follow this growth, he said.
“Over the next two or three years, we will add a capability where you’ll be able to purchase your flight tickets, make reservations and hotel accommodations through the app,” Dimanche said. “It’s never been done before, what we’re doing.”
