App of the Year 2017

Start-up name: Bloom & Wild
Founders: Aron Gelbard and Ben Stanway
Started in: 2013
Based in: London
Business description: A ‘flowers through the letterbox’ subscription service

A time-honoured gifting tradition, the practice of giving flowers is still going strong.

But, even with advances in online ordering and delivery, it’s riddled with impracticality. Flowers often turn up wilted in giant, cumbersome boxes that require the recipient to wait at home to accept them, spoiling the surprise.

Enter Bloom & Wild, the subscription service that packages bouquets in unique, slim packaging which can be posted through the letterbox while protecting each petal from damage.

And with flowers sent out in bud, lucky recipients can watch them bloom and enjoy them for as long as possible.

With over 70% of its traffic coming via mobile, Bloom & Wild’s app is powered by innovation. A personalisation algorithm makes it quicker and easier for users to find the right bouquet, while the service’s check-out process is touted to take “just seconds”.

Unlike other florists, Bloom & Wild says sustainability is key to its operations, with the start-up making use of recyclable packaging and leveraging predictive analytics to harvest only as many flowers as it will sell, minimising the wastage typical of the industry.

Founded by Young Gun Aron Gelbard and Ben Stanway, the business has blossomed since its 2013 launch. Having grown by 400% between 2014 and 2016, Bloom & Wild says it has over 15,000 five-star reviews on Reviews.co.uk, with its social media following growing by 10% month-on-month.

Our Startups Awards 2017 App of the Year winner now has its sights set on international expansion, with roots now planted in France and Germany and plans in place to support next-day delivery in these regions.

Bloom & Wild was up against seven other fantastic apps for this title, with specialist dietary requirement shopping app Spoon Guru given the Highly Commended award, and peer-to-peer medical learning app MedShr recognised as Commended App of the Year.