Glimpse

Glimpse operates as a product placement platform that has evolved its model, showcasing adaptability to market needs. The company was founded by Akash Raju, Anuj Mehta, and Kushal Negi, who began their entrepreneurial journey at Purdue University. Initially, they organized brand pop-ups from a U-Haul truck to create interactive shopping experiences on their college campus. This early venture highlighted the potential for connecting brands with consumers in non-traditional ways.

The founders transitioned this concept to the short-term rental market, launching Glimpse in 2020. The platform enables consumer brands to place their products in luxury short-term rentals and resorts, offering guests a 'try-before-you-buy' experience in a natural setting. For brands, this serves as a channel for experiential marketing, allowing them to track guest engagement and drive sales through direct interaction with their products. The business model is subscription-based, with brands paying a fee determined by the number of properties their products are in. This approach created a network of over 8,000 short-term rentals and more than 150 brands.

More recently, Glimpse has pivoted to address a different challenge within the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry. It now offers an AI-powered service for end-to-end deduction management. This service automates the complex process of tracking and disputing payment deductions from retailers and distributors, aiming to recover lost revenue and reduce manual work for CPG brands. The AI categorizes deductions, extracts key details, and manages the dispute process with major distributors and retailers like Target, KeHE, and UNFI. This strategic shift was supported by a $10 million Series A funding round led by 8VC, with participation from YCombinator and Origin Ventures. The capital is intended to expand engineering and technical teams and extend services to major retailers like Walmart and Amazon.

The founders' backgrounds are rooted in technology and business. CEO Akash Raju holds degrees in Computer Engineering and Industrial Management from Purdue and has prior experience at Microsoft and Tesla. COO Anuj Mehta studied Industrial Engineering at Purdue and had internships at UPS Supply Chain Solutions and West Monroe Partners. Kushal Negi, the Chief Business Officer, also a Purdue alumnus, was instrumental in developing the company's strategy to help brands reach customers beyond traditional advertising. Keywords: product placement, experiential marketing, CPG, deduction management, AI service, short-term rentals, brand partnerships, try-before-you-buy, retail technology, revenue recovery