Don’t worry, we’re talking about:
Spanish (Spanish), too much!
It’s like yesterday when the founders of Tapatio introduced the Shark investors from Canal Sony. But make no mistake, these guys look completely different now.
Fortunately, I was able to attend a small committee fundraising pitch meeting and see how different these guys are these days. The event organized by ArkAngeles, the virtual crowdfunding venture capital fund, took place at the Hyatt Regency in Guadalajara.
Among the 20 participants we were able to find famous names from the football industry, such as the star player of Atlas, Juan Pablo Vigón, as well as other former Mexican national team l
I am a huge fan of these guys. Not only do they seem to be super excited and passionate about their product. They are also excellent speakers.
So what is Pitz?
The startup is completely changing the way they operate.
Pitz was started in 2016 by Fernando Mendivil, Rafael Sanchez Varela and Eduardo Saracho.
In 2016, when they took on sharks, the concept was a little offbeat. The business model was not well defined and many features were not fully developed or even fully clear.
But if it’s not the same, how is Pitz different now?
Pitz is a B2B2C platform that allows amateur players to organize their team, register for league tournaments, as well as create a virtual avatar capable of improving several indicators in order to obtain corporate sponsorships.
Through the mobile app, users can record and track their skills based on their performance during matches. Pitz uses machine learning based on historical data to create a gamified version of players and their teams. Users can improve their skills and receive recommendations from other players to increase their chances of getting corporate referrals.
The app also allows tournament organizers to better manage match schedules, confirm team attendance and allow fees to be paid through the app.
Status
The company is already well ahead in terms of customer arrivals. Linio and Caliente are already clients of the platform, while Akron, Umbro, Puma as well as Corona, Kia, Rappi, Electrolit and EA Sports are already in talks.
These guys have succeeded in creating a very sophisticated business model based on interactive advertising that promises brands direct customer conversions, rather than just impressions.
Companies can now “sponsor†team uniforms in exchange for terms of engagement. Users must follow the instructions and participate in the activation campaign for brands to sponsor their uniforms. Win-win situation, I would say. Very smart business model.
Thoughts
To be honest, I didn’t expect such a fancy product as the current one. I wasn’t aware of or at least didn’t see a clear way to monetize such a platform. But now it’s no longer a question of whether or not they can monetize, but on which they will focus.
I am bullish. I think they’re definitely on the right track, nonetheless, they’re standing at a breaking point where there are many paths they could take. Choose wisely.
Some paths may be kept short while others will certainly take them exponentially. However, I think they must
No one can be a top goalkeeper, striker and coach at the same time. Maybe gradually, but not all at once.
Trying to tackle every feature at the same time would mean not going far enough, not giving one feed their 100%, and staying average in all of them. However, it’s good to see that they have so much on their minds and have different ways of monetizing. I see all of these ambitious goals being achieved in the long term.
So in short: the market is huge, they have found a great way to turn a simple B2C application into a solid B2B business. I love the app, I love the founders. I would invest myself. Concentrate, this is my only suggestion.
If you’re interested, you can invest in the Pitz via ArkAngeles, here!
-VC
