Historically, when a fresh, young Boston company like SCVNGR got the green light on a big round of funding, the obvious next move was to find some office space in Silicon Valley. Not anymore, according to Seth Priebatsch, the 21-year-old CEO of SCVNGR.
“We are excited to be in Boston,” said Priebatsch in a phone call earlier today,”We got a bunch of offers from people outside of Boston.”
He made it clear that — after recieving $4M in funding this week — the company is here to stay. Oh, and did I forget to mention they’re hiring!
Seth’s company received $4 million in funding from Google Ventures on December 24th. SCVNGR is a leader in Boston’s start-up scene. They were founded in 2008, and they’re already reporting over $1M in revenue during their first year in operation.
SCVNGR lets you use your cellphone to go on scavenger hunts through cities, museums, and colleges. In a unique and creative deployment of geo-location technology SCVNGR sends clues, challenges, and hints to your phone.
Here’s a video that gives you better idea of what SCVNGR is all about:
Robbins Diamonds Dash from SCVNGR on Vimeo
So what will this funding mean for this innovative company headquartered in Boston?
“Our first priority is hiring,” said Seth before revealing that SCVNGR is looking for local RUBY, iPhone and Android developers, as well as sales people. He also confirmed reports that the company has plans to double in size over the coming months. With more people working for them, we can expect new products and enhancements to the current (and currently awesome) system.
Seth, a Boston native, views SCVNGR as, “an extension to my personal life.” He attributes part of the company’s early success to this mindset, and it’s also one reason he’s keeping his company in Massachusetts.
Google Ventures’ Rich Miner, another fixture of the Boston tech scene, is the newest member SCVNGR’s board. He’s going to be crucial when it comes to the new developments. According to Seth, Rich is a cool guy and SCVNGR is pumped to have him on the team. Miner joins Peter Bell from Highland Capital on the board. Miner joined Google Ventures when Google bought Android, the company he co-founded. Miner has some undeniable vision when it comes to mobile platforms. Mix that with SCVNGR’s video game-like appeal, and you’ve got some serious potential. At least, that’s the way it looks right now.
In my opinion, SCVNGR is poised to become a bigger presence in Boston. By recognizing the local talent pool and tech community, and opting to stay in Beantown, companies like SCVNGR are letting the startup and venture capital worlds know that Boston deserves it’s reputation as a solid hub for innovation.
