Startup UCLA Summer Accelerator 2016 introduces: Playfull
Introducing Playfull – an app where you can play games to win food from local restaurants. The company was founded by Patrick Lu, Zhuping Hu, and Roman Chang – three UCLA alumni who realized that they could take their passion for creating video games into the restaurant world. The other members of the team include Andrew Lee, Alex Hesselgrave, and Suhani Ashok. Currently, Playfull is a part of Startup UCLA’s 2016 Summer Accelerator and receives weekly Blackstone LaunchPad venture consulting. Although Playfull is only presently operating within the Westwood area, the startup has managed to obtain some key partnerships with some big brands, including: Subway, KFC, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, and Chick-fil-A. Patrick, Zhuping and Roman plan on expanding Playfull to restaurants across the country. Currently, Playfull is a part of Startup UCLA’s 2016 Summer Accelerator and receives weekly Blackstone LaunchPad venture consulting.
The lesson: “It’s lots of luck, and lots of hard work,” stated Zhu. As the tech world is only continuing to be saturated by startups that are aiming for key partnerships, the guys offered some insight into how they were able to establish and maintain their own. Most importantly, Patrick stated: You cannot be afraid to go out and talk to A LOT of people. And you cannot be afraid to be turned down. The guys told me that they would spend hours cold calling restaurants, and despite constant rejection, their perseverance was what would pay off. Chick-fil-A, for instance, felt like a total long shot – but when they called, Chick-fil-A was looking for something exactly like Playfull. So, in the end – to all startups trying to find partnerships – be relentless, and don’t stop calling.
