Last Updated on May 5, 2014 by New-Startups Team
Remember when we shared Huddlers? An app by Toronto entrepreneurs that helped make the process of organizing team events much more simpler, Huddlers aimed to remove the frustrations that come with organizing with friends. From time scheduling, passing communications, and sending invites the app removed the need to use Facebook or emails for organization and made sports related event planning much more easier.
If the recreational sports industry is handled, clearly, by Huddlers, what about every other type of event? Whilst there are currently products available that do parts of event planning, nothing offers the full package that web app Emble does to plan amazing events with friends. Specifically developed for small-scale events such as birthday parties and holidays the startup wants to make planning get-togethers easier for everyone.
There are two main issues people come across when organizing things like parties and holidays. Firstly, people struggle to settle on what to do and when to do it, so you end up with nightmarishly long email threads/Facebook messages where nothing actually gets decided. The other big problem is when it comes to money: those organizing events are often left out of pocket for several reasons – it’s awkward asking friends to contribute (regardless of how long you’ve known them), people might not have the cash on them, or they simply forget.
Emble identifies these pain points through a flat, slick and ultra-modern design to let friends vote on dates and ideas, bring the event together and controlled via social media integration, and even collect funds to never have to deal with the awkward moments of asking for money.
We asked co-founder Tom Starley to share his favorite event organization moment and how it made Emble a reality:
“The best event I ever went to was actually a mini festival I organized as a surprise for my girlfriend’s birthday last year. I enlisted a load of my friends to help me pull it off, and she genuinely didn’t have a clue! We had a whole weekend of music, with friends’ bands playing on both days, and we all camped on site. It was a bit of a logistical nightmare trying to get everyone sorted, and there were some nights when I was stealthily trying to send emails and wondering if it was going to be worth it, but it really was. My girlfriend had “the best birthday ever” and everyone had an incredible time. Watching my friend’s band as the sun went down, surrounded by the people I love, was such a perfect experience. It really solidified my belief that life is all about having fun with those who matter to you, and made me even more determined to bring Emble to life – just in time for this year’s Lucyfest so I can enjoy the organizational process more!”
Emble aims to do one thing really well: make event planning as simple as possible for everyone, regardless of what tools they use or how the prefer to communicate. And they do it with a well-designed platform and a belief that we shouldn’t be frustrated when planning with friends. Instead it should be fun, simple and exciting—Emble makes that possible. In the future the team hopes to create a mobile application and team up event organization with a recommendation engine. Imagine planning a camping trip and being presented campsite examples to streamline the booking after the planning had been completed. Emble will come to private beta in June of this year, but you can sign up on their site now for early access.