People’s Champion Finalist: Hopster

Start-up name: Hopster
Founder: Nicholas Walters
Started in: 2013
Based in: London
Business description: Entertainment and learning app for children

Shortlisted category:

App of the Year

The Hopster story:

A “digital playroom” for kids aged two to six, the Hopster app combines learning and entertainment through an extensive library of U-rated children’s TV shows, alongside a suite of educational games.

An idea conjured up by Nick Walters in 2013, the start-up has become the number one grossing app for children in the UK, has launched in over 100 countries globally, including South Africa and even Saudi Arabia, and has over 500,000 downloads and counting.

Global expansion has been boosted by an impressive Series A round in January this year which involved TV star Davina McCall, Skype and LOVEFiLM co-founder Peter Read, and MADE.com CTO Jonathan Howell, amongst a roster of other high-profile names.

Walters credits his early-stage success to having created a win/win for kids and parents by mixing over 5,000 children’s favourites such as Thomas the Tank Engine and Peppa Pig with “something that parents can feel good about giving to their kids”.

Now with 20 employees, Walters plans to grow the business “faster than ever before” – by 500% to be exact. Just this month, the entrepreneur launched a French language version of the app and major deals with leading telcos and mobile operators will be announced imminently.

Why Hopster made our 60:

In less than two years, Walters has built a brand that is successfully going head to head with the likes of Nickelodeon, YouTube and Netflix. It’s little wonder that Hopster’s range of great video content combined with a mission to help educate young children has found support from industry leading names.

Where to find out more about Hopster:

Website: www.hopster.tv
Twitter: twitter.com/hopsterTV
Facebook: facebook.com/hopsterTV