The Inspiration Behind Drip
Javaughn Lawrence was wandering around Eniac Ventures’ entrepreneur-in-residence program in 2020, searching for a product to develop. It was then that he stumbled upon an idea while browsing a Facebook group for Pokémon collectors. He observed people hosting "ripping and shipping" events, where they would tear open packs of Pokémon cards and sell them to others in real-time.
"It was interesting," Lawrence recalls, "but the actual experience was very bad." The video quality was poor, the chat was lagging, and users had to navigate through multiple payment methods. However, despite these issues, people were still enthusiastic about buying and engaging with the live streams.
Lawrence’s attention to this phenomenon sparked an idea within him. He came away from the group not only with a pack of Pokémon cards but also with the vision of creating something better – Drip.
The Birth of Drip
In January 2021, Lawrence teamed up with Sameep Sheth to start building what would become Drip. They aimed to create "the Shopify for livestream commerce," providing the necessary tooling for users to run live auctions, drops, or buy-it-now formats via Drip’s existing marketplace.
The Growing Demand for Live Commerce
Live commerce is experiencing significant growth in popularity, particularly in China. According to estimates, the Chinese market will reach $423 billion in sales by 2022. In contrast, the U.S. live commerce market is expected to hit $35 billion by 2024.
Drip is competing in a crowded space dominated by Whatnot and Popshop. To capitalize on future demand, the company is developing unique features that enable users to embed livestreams into their web properties, capturing a larger audience simultaneously. Additionally, Drip allows third-party developers to build experiences on top of its ecosystem.
Enhancing User Experience
Drip has identified an opportunity to improve the NFT purchasing experience by incorporating social interactions and community engagement. Co-founders Javaughn Lawrence and Sameep Sheth have observed users taking screen recordings of NFT reveals or having friends join them on video calls while buying NFTs. To address this, Drip aims to provide a seamless and engaging experience for buyers.
The Power of Funding
Initially, the company secured several hundred thousand dollars in seed funding but saw exponential growth over 20 times in monthly volume, reaching a team size of 19. It was then that Lawrence and Sheth decided to pursue additional funding. They successfully raised $28.5 million in a combined seed and Series A round, with $23 million allocated as Series A funds at an over-$100 million valuation.
This new funding will enable Drip to scale its NFT selling efforts, including on-chain transactions on Ethereum and seller acquisitions. Additionally, the company plans to decentralize access to its live selling capabilities and grow its team, particularly in engineering, product, partnerships, and operations.
Decentralizing Access
The success of Drip’s platform has highlighted an emerging behavior among users: taking screen recordings or sharing their NFT buying experiences with friends on video calls. Co-founders Javaughn Lawrence and Sameep Sheth believe that this social interaction is essential to the NFT purchasing experience.
To address this, Drip aims to provide a seamless and engaging experience for buyers by incorporating features such as:
- Community engagement: allowing users to interact with each other in real-time during live events
- Social sharing: enabling users to share their experiences on social media platforms
- Friendliness: providing an intuitive and user-friendly interface for both new and experienced users
The Future of Drip
With the support of its recent funding, Drip is poised to revolutionize the livestream commerce industry. By focusing on community engagement, social sharing, and friendliness, the company aims to provide a unique and enjoyable experience for buyers.
As the demand for live commerce continues to grow, Drip is well-positioned to capitalize on this trend and become a leader in the market.
