Quirky (company)

Quirky is an invention platform that connects inventors with companies that specialized in a specific product category.[1]

Quirky
Type of businessPrivate
Available inEnglish
HeadquartersNew York City
Founder(s)Ben Kaufman
Key peopleGina Waldhorn, President
Parent
  • Quirky, Inc. (2009-2015)
  • Q Holdings, LLC (2015-present)
URLwww.quirky.com
RegistrationOptional
Users1.2 million+
LaunchedJune 2009 (2009-06)
Current statusActive

History

Quirky was founded in 2009 by Ben Kaufman.[2]

In April 2010, Quirky received $6.5 million in Series A venture capital funding, led by RRE Ventures.[3] The company later received a $16 million Series B round in August 2011 led by Norwest Venture Partners, and a $68 million Series C round in September 2012 led by Andreessen Horowitz and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.[4] Then, in November 2013, Quirky raised $79 million in Series D funding from GE as well as its venture investors Andreessen Horowitz, Norwest Venture Partners, RRE, and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.[5] Part of the deal included a $30 million investment from GE, as well as a partnership to build 30 connected-home gadgets together in the next five years.[6]

In 2011, a reality television series named Quirky debuted on the Sundance Channel following events at the Quirky office.[7]

The May 6, 2012 episode of CNN's The Next List featured CEO Ben Kaufman and the company.[8]

On July 31, 2015, Ben Kaufman stepped down as CEO following a layoff of 111 employees due to trouble getting funding.[9][10][11][12][13]

On September 22, 2015, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.[14][15] The company's assets, including its website and most of its products, were bought by Q Holdings for $4.7 million in late 2015, despite objections from General Electric.[16][17][18] Quirky's smart home Wink platform was sold to Flextronics for $15 million in November 2015.[19][20]

It was announced on February 8, 2016 that the company had new financing and owners.[21]

See also

References
  1. "About". Quirky. 3 June 2014.
  2. "Quirky Is Telling the World Just How Unimportant Its CEO Is". AdWeek. 2014-05-30. Retrieved 2016-07-13.
  3. Quirky's 23-year-old CEO finds love with the supply chain, Paul Boutin, VentureBeat, April 27, 2010
  4. Fenn, Donna (September 7, 2012). "Quirky Gets Backing From Andreessen Horowitz and Kleiner Perkins". New York Times. Retrieved October 17, 2012.
  5. Gannes, Liz (November 13, 2013). "Quirky Raises $79M, Including $30M From GE to Make Connected-Home Gadgets". All Things Digital.
  6. Stinson, Liz (November 19, 2013). "Quirky and GE Partner to Conquer the Internet of Things". Wired.
  7. Associated Press, "Startup Quirky brings people's ideas to life", Japan Times, 28 August 2011, p. 5.
  8. "This week on 'The Next List': Quirky.com brings invention to the masses". CNN. Retrieved 2016-07-13.
  9. D'Onfro, Jillian (1 August 2015). "The CEO of New York startup Quirky steps down in the wake of lay-offs and funding struggles". Business Insider.
  10. Diana, Chelsea (3 August 2015). "Quirky founder Ben Kaufman steps down as CEO". New York Business Journal.
  11. Alois, JD (3 August 2015). "Quirky CEO Ben Kaufman Out. Replaced by CFO Ed Kremer". Crowdfunding Insider.
  12. Pastore, Rose (3 August 2015). "Quirky CEO Ben Kaufman Steps Down".
  13. Crist, Ry (2 August 2015). "Quirky's Ben Kaufman steps down as CEO".
  14. Gleason, Stephen (22 September 2015). "Invention Startup Quirky Files for Bankruptcy". The Wall Street Journal.
  15. Lohr, Steve (22 September 2015). "Quirky, an Invention Start-Up, Files for Bankruptcy". The New York Times.
  16. "New York bankruptcy judge approves sale of Quirky despite General Electric objections". Albany Business Review. American City Business Journals. 2015-12-11. Retrieved 2016-07-13.
  17. Mann, Stephanie Gleason And Ted (2015-12-04). "GE Says Quirky Has Hurt Its Reputation". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2016-07-13.
  18. "Quirky Gets Nod On $4.7M Asset Sale - Law360". www.law360.com. Retrieved 2016-07-13.
  19. Kastrenakes, Jacob (2015-09-22). "Quirky files for bankruptcy and announces plans to sell Wink". The Verge. Retrieved 2016-07-13.
  20. Kastrenakes, Jacob (2016-04-01). "Wink opens up about surviving the fall of Quirky". The Verge. Retrieved 2016-07-13.
  21. "An Introduction". A Quirky Blog. Quirky. Retrieved 2016-07-13.


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