Apptegy provides a mobile application that helps schools and school districts recruit and communicate with students and potential students. The platform integrates multiple points of communication with students and student families allowing the school user to write a single story but share it across social platforms and in the preferred way that readers want to receive the information. This structure creates an opportunity to build special stories about students.
The company’s proprietary application, Thrillshare, was built with mobile in mind. The company wants to communicate student stories to help schools recruit and retain students. Based in Little Rock, Arkansas, the company has grown from humble beginnings to more than 100 employees in 2020.
Jeston George, one of the Middle’s leading Indian American founders, is a serial entrepreneur who has founded multiple companies, including an advertising company that specialized in direct marketing and distribution. His founding experience was critical to navigating the complexities of running Apptegy. For example, the firm has raised more than thirteen million dollars, but through a variety of transaction types, including a recapitalization by Five Elms (of Kansas City) in 2017.
The company raised additional capital in October 2020 from Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce. According to George, the funding was an opportunity to continue the firm’s strategic growth. “We’re excited to work with CIBC Innovation Banking as the team understands what it takes to scale sales and product teams while supporting our growth trajectory.” For example, “This financing facility provides additional runway to support our longer-term strategic initiatives including new product roll-outs, international expansion, and acquisition opportunities.”
Apptegy is based in Little Rock, Arkansas – which is an often overlooked startup area of the Middle. The region has produced more than twenty venture-backed startups since the beginning of 2019. Little Rock and Fayetteville buoy the southern border of the region.
