WASH July 2011 : Page 58

the radar | biz 58 | It All Clicks A new app has found a launchpad in DC’s burgeoning restaurant scene. | By Sarah Wildman | | Photography by Stacy Zarin Goldberg | This town is in a restaura nt rena issa nce, welcoming nearly as many new eat spots as new websites and deals to promote them. But while insiders are forecasting an imminent bubble burst for group deal sites, a new local company is gaining ground with a different approach. Venga, a new event app for iPhones and A ndroids (coming soon to Black Berr y) was created by DC socia l stalwarts Winston Bao Lord, Reg Stettinius and Sam von Pa llaro. Like other online tools, it connects customers to pl a c e , a nd pl a c e to c u s tome r s . T he d i f f e re nc e , restaurateurs say, is in the how. Instead of percentage-off discounts that the customer has to purchase a head of time, Venga (which tra nslates into “c’mon, let’s go” in Spanish) highlights happy hours and unique specia ls, as well as times when wine flows more freely, k ids dine gratis or your favorite DJ is in town from Barcelona. The app (govenga.com) is searchable via GPS, by event t ype and by venue and as a communication tool, it’s a new means of advertising, a webzine and a socia l networking site. “It is everything good that the others are bad at,” says Rob Wilder, CEO at ThinkFoodGroup and an advisor to Venga, referring to the discount email boom. “Venga is like a television station that broadcasts whatever messages we program. We do a lot of special events; we bring in special chefs, special dishes, wine festivals. They rarely involve discounts, but instead experiences.” Winston Bao Lord sees Venga as the natural next iteration of Urbanspoon, Zagat and Yelp, and he’s bet big on it. Bao Lord sees Venga as the natural next iteration of Urbanspoon, Zagat and Yelp, and he’s bet big on it. He closed up shop at his consulting firm, Lord and Associates, and is now focusing all of his attention on Venga, founded initally by the company’s current chairwoman, Stettinius. There was a time when, Bao Lord says, “you’d want to go out, and then you’d spend an hour hunting and pecking on your computer looking for what’s happening.” Venga promises to cut through that, allowing restaurants and bars to post what they’re featuring at any given moment. The technology isn’t only devoted to dining. Venga has reached out to Rock N Roll Hotel and 9:30 Club, as well as various museums and ga lleries to post their happenings. Each venue pays a monthly fee and controls its own content. Customers pay nothing. You can create your own A-list of neighborhood watering holes. You can screen out unnecessar y sections as well. No k ids? Just uncheck the search box for “kids and families.” | July /August 2011 “ W he n I s t a r t e d out 11 y e a r s a g o,” s a y s C he f G e o f f ’s o w n e r G e o f f Tr a c y, w h o n o w o w n s f o u r re st au ra nt s, “I wa s put t ing flyers on w ind sh ield s” a nd spend i ng ten s of t hou sa nd s on c la s si fied ad s. Ti me s h a ve c h a n g e d . For mo s t re s t au r a nt s , he s a y s , d e a l site s a re a fi na ncia l d ra in . “Veng a st re a m l ine s a l l t he e lement s of soci a l ne t work i n g ,” t he c he f e l a b or ate s. “It c a n t weet a n a n nou nc ement to a l l my Tw it ter a nd Veng a fol lowers, a nd I c a n si mu lt a neou sly post t hat to Fac ebook a nd Fou rsqu a re.” He hope s to have a l l of h is chef s post d a i ly specia ls to t he Veng a ac c ou nt a s a not her way to c om mu n ic ate w it h cu stomers. This summer, Venga has begun encouraging users to invite friends to download the app in return for special prizes, such as a mea l cooked by Spike Mendelsohn in your home, dinner at Mike Isabella’s chef ’s table or a year’s free pass to Rock N Roll Hotel. “Ultimately,” Bao Lord says, “people don’t want discounts, they want ser vice.” APP-SOLUTLEY FABULOUS Company chair and investor relations head Reg Stettinius’ dreams for Venga began in 2009. In 2010, Winston Bao Lord joined the company to oversee marketing, PR and strategic relationships. Sam von Pallaro came aboard at the same time to manage the tech and finance side of the business. All three partners closed other ventures to focus solely on Venga.

The Radar Biz

Sarah Wildman

It All Clicks A new app has found a launchpad in DC’s burgeoning restaurant scene. This town is in a restaurant renaissance, welcoming nearly as many new eat spots as new websites and deals to promote them. But while insiders are forecasting an imminent bubble burst for group deal sites, a new local company is gaining ground with a different approach. Venga, a new event app for iPhones and Androids (coming soon to BlackBerry) was created by DC social stalwarts Winston Bao Lord, Reg Stettinius and Sam von Pallaro. Like other online tools, it connects customers to place, and place to customers. The difference, restaurateurs say, is in the how. Instead of percentageoff discounts that the customer has to purchase ahead of time, Venga (which translates into “c’mon, let’s go” in Spanish) highlights happy hours and unique specials, as well as times when wine flows more freely, kids dine gratis or your favorite DJ is in town from Barcelona. The app (govenga.com) is searchable via GPS, by event type and by venue and as a communication tool, it’s a new means of advertising, a webzine and a social networking site. “It is everything good that the others are bad at,” says Rob Wilder, CEO at ThinkFoodGroup and an advisor to Venga, referring to the discount email boom. “Venga is like a television station that broadcasts whatever messages we program. We do a lot of special events; we bring in special chefs, special dishes, wine festivals. They rarely involve discounts, but instead experiences.” Bao Lord sees Venga as the natural next iteration of Urbanspoon, Zagat and Yelp, and he’s bet big on it. He closed up shop at his consulting firm, Lord and Associates, and is now focusing all of his attention on Venga, founded initally by the company’s current chairwoman, Stettinius. There was a time when, Bao Lord says, “you’d want to go out, and then you’d spend an hour hunting and pecking on your computer looking for what’s happening.” Venga promises to cut through that, allowing restaurants and bars to post what they’re featuring at any given moment. The technology isn’t only devoted to dining. Venga has reached out to Rock N Roll Hotel and 9:30 Club, as well as various museums and galleries to post their happenings. Each venue pays a monthly fee and controls its own content. Customers pay nothing. You can create your own A-list of neighborhood watering holes. You can screen out unnecessary sections as well. No kids? Just uncheck the search box for “kids and families.” “When I started out 11 years ago,” says Chef Geoff ’s owner Geoff Tracy, who now owns four restaurants, “I was putting flyers on windshields” and spending tens of thousands on classified ads. Times have changed. For most restaurants, he says, deal sites are a financial drain. “Venga streamlines all the elements of social networking,” the chef elaborates. “It can tweet an announcement to all my Twitter and Venga followers, and I can simultaneously post that to Facebook and Foursquare.” He hopes to have all of his chefs post daily specials to the Venga account as another way to communicate with customers. This summer, Venga has begun encouraging users to invite friends to download the app in return for special prizes, such as a meal cooked by Spike Mendelsohn in your home, dinner at Mike Isabella’s chef’s table or a year’s free pass to Rock N Roll Hotel. “Ultimately,” Bao Lord says, “people don’t want discounts, they want service.”

Previous Page Next Page

Publication List
Using a screen reader? Click Here