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Ryan Breslow was a sophomore from Stanford when he decided to join one of the famous traditions of the university: he gave up to start his own business.
Well, he did not totally give up the benefits of life at Stanford when he left school five years ago. Breslow says that he continued to live secretly in his former dorm and that he even ate free meals on campus when starting Bolt, a start-up payment that seeks to challenge Amazon.
Bolt said Tuesday he has raised $ 68 million in additional financing, his largest round ever, bringing his total equity investment to $ 90 million. The round was led by Activant Capital and Tribe Capital. The San Francisco-based company, which was co-founded by Eric Feldman, currently has more than 125 employees.
Challenge Amazon
Bolt's technology offers businesses a way to implement a simplified and faster payment system, with a simple-to-use verification process and fraud protection features. In other words, something similar to the systems used by the online retail giant, Amazon.
In fact, "Amazon is a huge source of inspiration for us," Breslaw told Business Insider. "The problem is that if you are not Amazon, you would not have the engineers to create that optimal shopping experience for your buyers … we do it for everyone. a world in 10 years where everyone can have their own Amazon ".
Bolt's technology is available to businesses with their own e-commerce sites, especially companies looking to offer more personalized products, such as furniture, mattresses or eyewear. he declares. Purchases for such products are not always ideal on Amazon, he added.
"Amazon will win with respect to commodities," Breslaw said. But for companies selling non-generic branded products, Bolt offers a way to "level the playing field," he said.
"We create this easy experience wherever you shop," he said. "Because it levels the rules of the game, it's sort of a challenge for Amazon."
Climb challenge
Analyst Tim Bajarin of Creative Strategies Inc. stated that Bolt was intended to help retailers face clumsy payment systems.
"Trademarks all have their own payment procedures and all too often people do not complete the transaction if the procedure is complicated or they have to re-enter their data and their payment method each time they buy something, "he told Business Insider.
Many retailers "envy Amazon's one-click payment procedure and yearn for something like Bolt that would simplify the process and make it easier to check when buying a product or a product." a service, "he added.
"It seems that Bolt could offer them this type of service in one click and should interest many retailers in the future," said Bajarin. But he also compared Bolt to other startups seeking to win on Amazon.
It will be "a difficult battle," he said. "Amazon's global reach and logistics excellence make competition and growth difficult, unless they are in a very vertical segment that meets the needs of a very large audience." specific."
stall
Breslaw quickly realized the need for easy-to-use payment systems. As a college student, he helped companies create their websites and "ended up succeeding." This has exposed to the need for easy-to-use payment systems.
"I was fascinated by the payments and by the way the money was handled," he said.
This interest continued after his entry at Stanford. In 2014, he decided to give up to start his business. "I finally decided that I was more passionate about this subject than the school," he said.
But Breslaw still lived in his old dormitory for a quarter. He even had the opportunity to take free meals in a student dining room because he became good friends with the chef "who did not know that I had dropped out of school".
He was able to stay on campus with the help of his former roommates, even though he had to make sure he did not get caught, he said.
"When the cleaning agents arrived, I made sure I was not there," he said.
Do you have any advice regarding Bolt or another technology company? Contact this reporter by e-mail at the address [email protected], him message on Twitter@benpimentel. You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop.
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