A group of recent University of Michigan graduates have come together to create an Internet start-up that combines both shopping and social media called HangTrend.com.
"We think that shopping in general is social," says Valentin Gui, co-founder & director of business development for
HangTrend.com. "A lot of people still go to the mall. They go with their friends because they want to get a better idea of how a whole outfit will look."
HangTrend.com aims to make online shopping a social experience. Think of the site as being a combination of Facebook and visit to the mall. It allows users to look at clothes, make virtual outfits and share them with your friends to get recommendations and ideas. The site has lined up thousands of brands and millions of items.
The 7-month old start-up went live in July and has experienced 100 percent growth in users every week since it launched. "I want to have a national scale to the company," Gui says. "I want to be in all the universities in the U.S."
Gui (who graduated U-M in 2010 with a bachelors in economics) co-founded HangTrend.com with Leore Avidar (2011, bachelors of business administration), Enea Gjoka (2011, bachelors in chemical and molecular biology) and Zubair Ahsan (2012, masters in pharmaceutical engineering). The company currently employs the four co-founders and four interns.
Source: Valentin Gui, co-founder & director of business development for HangTrend.com
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.