Gratafy lets you tell people you care in a universally satisfying way — through booze and sugar.
The social gifting platform lets you send friends and family gifts that no-one could refuse — drinks, dinners, and desserts. The Seattle-based startup entered the Los Angeles market today and released the second version of its platform. It has also raised a hefty $2.45 million in seed financing to fuel further expansion.
Gratafy is based on the idea that most of us don’t need more scarves, sushi sets, and quirky pictures frames. Rather than searching for the “perfect gift,” which so often ends up going un or under-used, Gratafy enables you to send people items from their favorite bars and restaurants. You select a Facebook friend in the app, choose something off a menu or a gift certificate, and compose a message. Gratafy will notify your friend of the gift to redeem at their leisure.
One of the best things about a birthday or celebratory event is that your loved ones want to buy you food and drinks. However that involves actually being present at the restaurant or bar. Sending flowers is traditionally that “I can’t be there with you and/or don’t know what to buy you” gift, but not everyone is a flower person. Gratafy combines the pleasure of receiving a gastronomic treat with the convenience of sending flowers. Give me a glass of wine or decadent chocolate dessert over a pair of earrings I only kind of like any day.
Gratafy launched in November of 2012. It currently works with 200 high-end merchants, (sending someone a Doritos Locos taco is not an option) so the gifts feel like a splurge. Merchants appreciate the platform because it helps them attract customers and gain exposure. They have an easy opportunity to sell their products online, and Gratafy said that customers frequently “overspend” by 500% on redeemed gifts — one glass of Prosecco so easily turns into five, particularly when you are celebrating. Gratafy can also be useful in situations when you want to send a small token. For example, if a friend had a bad day and you want to send them a pint of their favorite IPA.
People have been sending each other gifts via the Internet for years, but like most areas of e-commerce, the shopping experience is changing. Consumers are looking for curated, personalized experiences. There is also a major Internet trend right now towards facilitating local, offline experiences, largely driven by mobile devices which enable people to access gifts, coupons, tickets on-the-go. Social gifting platform Wrapp recently raised $15 million in its second round of funding and Wantful has raised $5.5 million for its approach to gifting that gives recipients a customized catalogue to choose from. News broke earlier this month that Groupon acquired Plumfare, a startup that lets you gift items to friends from local merchants.
Gratafy sits at the intersection of all those trends — it is social, local, and mobile, and addresses the age-old problem of what to buy someone for a gift. The company has raised $2.45 million in seed funding from angel investors, including former general counsel of Facebook and VP of legal at Amazon Rudy Gadre.
Filed under: Deals, Lifestyle, Mobile, Social 
Gratafy begins national rollout to help you give the perfect gift
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