In 2020, Kathryn Wu embarked on a side project while working as a product engineer at Pinterest. This venture involved starting a milk tea company called Ohtea, with the aim of getting local grocery stores and gift shops to stock their tea. Wu faced challenges in identifying potential retailers and their contacts, ultimately leading to the demise of the company.
Reflecting on this experience, Wu shared with TechCrunch, “I failed to reach product market fit due to the difficulty in accessing retail information. This led me to consider solving this pain point for myself.”
This experience served as the foundation for the launch of Openmart, a startup co-founded by Wu and Richard He. Leveraging AI technology, Openmart scrapes data from public sources to create a database of local businesses categorized by type. Users can provide specific criteria, and Openmart generates a list of potential sales leads with detailed contact information.
Wu and He’s partnership started at Pinterest as interns and flourished within an Asian entrepreneurship community. Their shared passion for entrepreneurship and love for dogs, with Wu having a golden retriever and He a lab, led them to collaborate on Openmart.
Although Wu’s initial motivation was to assist local businesses, Openmart’s direction evolved to cater to larger enterprises struggling with local business sales outreach. The startup aims to simplify outbound sales processes for businesses across different sectors by using AI technology.
Established in late 2020 and a member of Y Combinator’s W24 cohort, Openmart attracted a diverse clientele during its beta phase, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to Series B and C startups. The company recently secured a $2.75 million seed funding round and is transitioning out of beta.
Focused on maintaining ownership and efficient use of capital, Openmart took a strategic fundraising approach. Following advice from YC partners, the company aims to secure 50% ownership through Series B funding and prioritize minimal dilution. By leveraging AI for productivity, Openmart plans to build a lean and effective engineering team.
Looking ahead, Openmart intends to expand beyond local business data aggregation while staying true to its roots in supporting small and medium-sized enterprises. The company aims to position itself as a leading provider of contact information for businesses within these segments.
