BuyBack Booth has raised $5.2 million in seed funding led by Brightspark Capital and with participation of Investissement Québec.
Founded by CEO Tony Mastronardi, Montreal based BuyBack Booth has developed the first-ever automated kiosk used specifically to offer accurate, reliable, and subjective diagnostic results. BuyBack Booth is a RaaS (Robot as a Service) provider to the smartphone ecosystem.
Having been testing beta units for over a year, BuyBack Booth intends to use the new capital to deploy their solution to a broader range of retail locations.
photo credit: BuyBack Booth
News Release
BuyBack Booth announces $5.2M funding, looks to commercialize its smartphone diagnostic robot
Montreal, July 14, 2020 – BuyBack Booth, a “Robot-as-a-Service” company that can accurately diagnose a phone’s condition, is announcing the completion of a $5.2 million funding round in Seed capital. The round was backed by Brightspark Capital and includes financing from the Québec government through Investissement Québec.
Based in Montreal, the company was founded by the serial entrepreneur behind TouchTunes (a digital kiosk business that got acquired in 2015 for US$350M). BuyBack Booth’s technology supports retailers in their trade-in programs, producing an accurate diagnostic of a used smartphone’s condition. In less than 3 minutes, the booth and smartphone app can accurately test 40+ unique functions to determine the internal health of a device, and evaluate its external state to ensure consistency in customer trade-ins.
The $35 billion smartphone diagnostics industry has seen expert technology being applied in manufacturer’s factories and specialized repair warehouses as part of the Quality Assurance process. However, the technology has yet to reach wireless carrier’s retail stores – where it’s needed the most. BuyBack Booth easily integrates with retailers as part of the store’s existing trade-in offering, warranty claim verification, “anytime insurance” feature, and more.
“There are two outstanding reasons we invested in BuyBack Booth”, said Sophie Forest, Managing Partner of Brightspark Capital. “First, the leadership team has a track record of success in the deployment of internationally networked kiosks. Second, we have seen how their technology fills a big need in the growing smartphone diagnostics industry”.
“We have had Beta units in the field for over a year and have achieved the reliability and product maturity that makes us ready to deploy our solution to a broader range of retail locations”, said Tony Mastronardi, CEO of BuyBack Booth. “With the completion of this seed round, we are excited to add the support of solid financial backing as we commercialize this innovative service.”
“At Investissement Québec, we’re proud to support businesses that work hard to find innovative, sustainable ways to meet market needs in a fast-changing market like BuyBack Booth’s,” said Guy LeBlanc, President and CEO of Investissement Québec. “By playing an active role in this financing round, we’re helping the company continue its development, and we’re certain that this success story is far from over.”
About BuyBack Booth
BuyBack Booth has developed the first-ever automated kiosk used specifically to offer accurate, reliable, and objective diagnostic results. BuyBack Booth is a RaaS (Robot as a Service) provider to the smartphone ecosystem. Their App-to-Booth technology easily integrates with any existing trade-in program, producing accurate diagnostics and condition validations right where the customer needs it the most.
About Brightspark
Brightspark is one of Canada’s top performing venture capital firms, actively investing in exceptional entrepreneurs since 1999. They provide growth capital and expertise to disruptive, market-transforming Canadian tech companies in seed to growth stages. Since inception, Brightspark has invested across traditional VC Funds, and more recently under an investment model open to individual and non-institutional investors. www.brightspark.com
About Investissement Québec
Investissement Québec’s mission is to play an active role in Québec’s economic development by spurring business innovation, entrepreneurship and business acquisitions, as well as growth in investment and exports. Operating in all the province’s administrative regions, the Corporation supports the creation and growth of businesses of all sizes with investments and customized financial solutions. It also assists businesses by providing consulting services and other support measures, including technological assistance available from Investissement Québec – CRIQ. In addition, through Investissement Québec International, the Corporation also prospects for talent and foreign investment and assists businesses with export activities.
BuyBack Booth media contact:
Julie Crossman
514 788-1222 ext 24
julie@buybackbooth.com
buybackbooth.com
Investissement Quebec media contact:
Isabelle Fontaine
Senior Director
Media and Government Affairs
Investissement Québec
Tel.: 514 876-9359