The idea for Boutikey was born from Tiana Haraguchi’s love of shopping—and a subpar experience she had doing just that at a favorite boutique, where she ended up paying full price during a major sale because of a miscommunication. She left a stable job in corporate finance to found the app, which gives local stores a platform for sharing sales and event info with shoppers, who in turn rack up reward points and discover new boutiques and merch. The launch wasn’t without its challenges; Haraguchi admits to learning more about business in the first three months at Boutikey than she had in three years in finance.
“There is definitely competition for attention,” she says. “Store owners get hit up by 20 different companies a day—tech companies, designers and reps, and more.” Some boutiques had to be wooed to sign up, so Haraguchi offered a free trial. Now Boutikey has nearly 70 stores on board, ranging from clothing and accessories shops to decor, jewelry and beauty purveyors. Version 2.0 debuts in July with a sleeker design and new features, like advanced searches and direct messaging to boutique owners. Also on the horizon: Boutikey is slated to debut a shopping platform for retail partners by summer’s end, and Haraguchi hopes to add two new cities to the mix in coming months.
On her style…
- “When it comes to fashion, I love trying new things and taking risks. I use pieces like simple crop tops and button-downs to balance out trendier pieces, like floral prints.”
- “I am a big fan of taking simple pieces and dressing them up or down. For this look, I took something chic—this Amanda Uprichard skirt—and dressed it down with a cotton button-down from Rails.”
Dressed for Success
The founders of five new fashion ventures share their stories—and style.
By Renata Certo-Ware | Photo Credit: Holly Rike | June 20, 2014
Tiana Haraguchi – Boutikey
The idea for Boutikey was born from Tiana Haraguchi’s love of shopping—and a subpar experience she had doing just that at a favorite boutique, where she ended up paying full price during a major sale because of a miscommunication. She left a stable job in corporate finance to found the app, which gives local stores a platform for sharing sales and event info with shoppers, who in turn rack up reward points and discover new boutiques and merch. The launch wasn’t without its challenges; Haraguchi admits to learning more about business in the first three months at Boutikey than she had in three years in finance.
“There is definitely competition for attention,” she says. “Store owners get hit up by 20 different companies a day—tech companies, designers and reps, and more.” Some boutiques had to be wooed to sign up, so Haraguchi offered a free trial. Now Boutikey has nearly 70 stores on board, ranging from clothing and accessories shops to decor, jewelry and beauty purveyors. Version 2.0 debuts in July with a sleeker design and new features, like advanced searches and direct messaging to boutique owners. Also on the horizon: Boutikey is slated to debut a shopping platform for retail partners by summer’s end, and Haraguchi hopes to add two new cities to the mix in coming months.
On her style…
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