Appetize, a company founded by three Trinity alumni, has been selected as one of two Irish start-ups to attend the Blackstone Techstars Training Camp in New York next month.
The company is based around social dining and allows people to discover, host and partake in dinner parties and pop-up events. The app-based company will allow users to host their own events, meet new people and earn money.
Appetize was founded by Robin Fitzpatrick, former Chair of Digital Arts Society and MSISS graduate, Padraic Rowley, last year’s Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) Ents Officer and computer science graduate, and Glen Byrne, last year’s TCDSU Communications and Marketing Officer and law graduate. The team are currently attending the pre-accelerator course with the National Digital Research Center (NDRC). On October 16, they will fly to Blackstone Techstars in New York.
Blackstone is a global investment and advisory company, with bases in London, New York and Tokyo. Blackstone will partner with Techstars for the event where the selected businesses will receive mentoring and network opportunities.
Speaking to Trinity News on the experience, Fitzpatrick said: “To be honest it’s been a lot of work, I’m working full time, Glen is studying for his law exams and Padraic is programming full time on the app. We pushed through and did a pitch for Launchpad in Trinity. I think the drive to get this business going really came through during the pitch which I think was what got us through.”
When discussing the future of Appetize, Fitzpatrick said: “We’ve a lot planned in the pipeline, some of it still to be confirmed. We’ve loads of surprises. But the biggest one is a ‘Come Dine With Me’ style competition where we’ll be giving prizes to the best chefs in Trinity.”
