For businesswomen buying clothes, guesswork over European sizes, name brands that “run small,” and the need to bring three sizes of the same outfit into the dressing room have been an unfortunate fact of life.
Enter Pasadena-based myShape Inc., an online clothing retailer catering to professional women. The firm has received a Series A round of funding from the Pasadena Angels. The amount was not disclosed.
The company is the brainchild of Louise Wannier, a co-founder of Gemstar. Its business plan aims to solve the problem of inconsistent sizes and unrealistic fit that plagues the female clothing market. It uses a “shapematch” software system that can match clothes of particular brands and styles to the customer, who creates her own shopping profile. It works with ready-to-wear fashion, so that women can realistically shop for and find clothing that works for them. Wannier said the company already had more than 1,000 registered members in January, before the site had even launched. The idea is that a woman can enter her measurements and preferences, and the software will “match” her shape to particular brands and sizes that correspond to her actual size.
Online Nuptials
L.A.-based WeddingChannel.com Inc. has been acquired by The Knot Inc. for $78 million in cash and stock. Both sites claim to be the “one-stop” source for wedding planning and gift buying information. The acquisition also represents a win for Pasadena-based Idealab, the incubator where the company got started in 1997. Idealab Capital Partners, RRE Investors and Goldman, Sachs & Co backed WeddingChannel.com. The company’s patented gift-registry system linked with the bridal registries of popular stores such as Tiffany & Co., Bloomingdale’s, Williams-Sonoma, Neiman Marcus, Pottery Barn and Crate & Barrel.
Beyond Software
Software is no longer enough. The Software Council of Southern California is changing its name, and its focus, reflecting a larger trend. “We’re seeing a real evolution in the tech sector here,” said Jon Kraft, chairman of the council and president of worldwide marketing for L.A.-based Auryn Inc., an animation technology company. “A lot of companies are emerging in wireless and Internet, and they don’t identify themselves as software companies.”
Formerly focused on just software, with a membership of more than 200 companies the council is now becoming the Technology Council of Southern California, with an emphasis on bringing in wireless, entertainment and networking companies. Santa Monica Wi-Fi hotspot giant Boingo Wireless just joined the council, as did L.A.-based digital music firm Napster Inc., Kraft said.
Council dues are based on the size of the company and range from $250 per year for small companies to $1,300 for companies with more than 100 employees. Council events include workshops, VentureNet competitions and an annual awards gala.
Take a Break.com
Newly launched mobile service Amp’d Mobile Inc. has been forming entertainment partnerships like crazy as networks are champing at the bit to access Amp’d’s target audience: restless youth.
The mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO, offers a broadband cell phone service that rides on Verizon Communications Inc.’s network backbone. Amp’d has already partnered with CBS, ABC, NBC, E!, MTV Networks and Spike TV to offer programming through users’ cell phones, and just announced Break.com, an L.A.-based male-targeted comedy Web site, as its newest content provider.
“Powering exclusive content into Amp’d Mobile’s wireless broadcast network ensures we’re on the forefront of offering mobile users unique access to our great comedic content anytime, anywhere,” said Keith Richman, chief executive of Break.com.
Staff reporter Hilary Potkewitz can be reached at
[email protected]
or at (323) 549-5225, ext. 226.
