Cameras were all the talk here last week on, but all that commuting must've taken its toll on you, yes? The Local Scene's travels around our beautiful homeland have come to an end, and this week, the technology spotlight moves from photography – a form of art that comes down to careful planning and a sharp eye – to something that's become a part of all our lives, whether we realise it or not.
Smartphones have become everyone's new companion, from being our study buddies to our trusty GPS systems. All smartphones come with their very own digital store, where mobile applications – usually more simply known as apps – can be downloaded either for free or a fixed price, giving new life to the phrase "a push of a button".
Convenience these days goes far beyond simply having a calculator at hand, or being able to take crystal clear photos. Even regular users like you and I expect to have everything at the tips of our fingers, and Malaysian mobile app developers have answered their callings.
The fashion market is filled to the brim with different clothing brands sprouting like mushrooms, and it's hardly uncommon to be spoilt for choice. With this in mind, local entrepreneur Kendrick Wong built a team and an idea of creating a mobile fashion discovery portal, which ultimately took form as Shoppr.
Instead of physically paying a visit to the mall and sifting through tens of stores, users can upload photos of their daily outfits, as well as their closets, to the app's database for others to view and like, and vice versa. Imagine having one big catalogue of apparel brands from all over the world, mixed and matched with different items of clothing – pretty dandy idea, if you ask me. Who better to show off your OOTDs to, if not fellow fashion enthusiasts?
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| The Shoppr app features a sleek, clean interface that makes its highlight, user apparel, stand out. (Shoppr, 2015) |
Fashion is, of course, important, but if it's one thing Malaysians can't go without, it's – yes, you probably guessed it – food!
Benson Chang helped out in small-time restaurants when he was younger, and the one thing he noticed was that the staff were often too busy to pick up the phone and take down bookings from callers. This was the inspiration behind his latest brainchild, TableApp.
Booking tables at any of the 120 startup restaurants (and counting) that the app has on board, without having to worry about phone calls not getting through or reservations getting lost, was the original purpose of the app. Now, though, more than 50,000 diners are using it as a platform to communicate with fellow foodies.
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| TableApp currently services 120 restaurants and allows for free bookings at all of them! (TableApp, 2014) |
Top-quality restaurant food is one thing, but what about the days where you just don't feel like going anywhere? Or the couch potatoes? The team at Presto has got that covered.
The name Presto might be familiar to some – not the magic spell, but the grocery store chain scattered around the Klang Valley. Its co-founders decided to open physical outlets first to get the brand name some exposure, but their real master plan soon followed – an online supermarket that delivers all ordered products fresh and right up to your doorstep.
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| Presto is not only available on mobile phones, but also has a web interface for those who prefer using their laptops or personal computers. (Presto Grocer, 2013) |
Apps like these take minutes to download, but years (and a ton of courage!) to even begin developing. Bottom line is, it's not easy. To deliver convenience to users and establish the local name in a market largely dominated by foreign players sounds like a huge feat, but we believe that apps like Shoppr, TableApp and Presto are bringing the nation one step closer to achieving that.
Taking the Malaysian name across oceans and continents are undoubtedly the long-term goal of these developers, but it's also heavily got to do with the pursuit (hint, hint) of next week's featurette, when we bring you exclusive content from some very special guests!
Bibliography
eMarketer Inc. (2014). 2 Billion Consumers Worldwide to Get Smart(phones) by 2016. eMarketer. Retrieved 6 November, 2015 from http://www.emarketer.com/Article/2-Billion-Consumers-Worldwide-Smartphones-by-2016/1011694
Presto Grocer. (2013). Presto is not only available on mobile phones, but also has a web interface for those who prefer using their laptops or personal computers [Online image]. Retrieved 6 November, 2015 from http://www.expatgomalaysia.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/3.-Presto-720.jpg
Shoppr. (2015). The Shoppr app features a sleek, clean interface that makes its highlight, user apparel, stand out [Online image]. Retrieved 6 November, 2015 from http://www.dealstreetasia.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Shoppr_raises_400k-seedfund_500startups_eastern_ventures.jpg
TableApp. (2014). TableApp currently services 120 restaurants and allows for free bookings at all of them! [Online image]. Retrieved 6 November, 2015 from http://az598155.vo.msecnd.net/wp-uploads/2014/01/reserve-restaurant-malaysia.png
Tay, Daniel. (2014). Forget food blogging: this startup aims to show that table reservations are the real money-makers. TechInAsia. Retrieved 6 November, 2015 from https://www.techinasia.com/forget-food-blogging-startup-aims-show-table-reservations-real-moneymakers/
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