Hipiti Platform Launch Creates Smarter Consumers, Consolidates Daily Emails

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 9, 2012 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- Co-founders and Stanford Business School alumni, Kristin Flink Kranias and Rama Katkar, today announced the launch of Hipiti (Hipiti.com), an online platform and email service that revolutionizes the way consumers view and receive daily sale emails from high-end brands and retailers. Users determine which brands and retailers they want included and the frequency of emails by simply clicking a box, and Hipiti rates the value of the offer.

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Formerly in Private Beta, Hipiti is the first platform of its kind that combines two years worth of data from around 150 select retailers and flash sale sites to track patterns and trends in retailer promotion emails. SaleTally, Hipiti's proprietary engine, determines the value of the sale, promotion, shipping, Buy One Get One, or flash sale and then displays the data of how good an offer is relative to historical offers for that retailer using a 4-tiered rating system. Additionally, SaleTally suggests the best similar store offers based on user history.

In 2011, the nation's top 100 retailers (by e-commerce revenue) sent an average of 177 emails to each customer. This is up 87% from year prior*.

"We created Hipiti to help overcome inbox frustration while easing the uncertainty of missing out on a good deal," Katkar, Hipiti co-founder said. "We know that our users were only opening about 15% of the emails from brands and retailers we have incorporated in to our site. It was obvious to us email marketing was becoming more overwhelming and less effective."

While their goal is to simplify and filter the overload of information consumers receive, Katkar and Kranias do expect the number of retailers, brands and flash sale sites they cover to grow but are selective on which companies they work with. Most of the retailers are participating via affiliate programs but Hipiti has also included brands, valuable to their target female customer, that do not participate in such networks. "Our users spend an average of $150 per purchase through our site. We provide value to retailers by motivating habitual and impulse shoppers to transact," said Hipiti co-founder Kranias.

Hipiti currently allows sign-up via Facebook and Twitter. In addition to Offer Ratings and inbox relief, Hipiti also provides new arrival and trend information. There are 5 major categories users can select to receive information about through their emails and a highly-customizable personal dashboard: clothing, shoes & accessories, beauty, home, kids & baby.

"It doesn't stop here. We think the iOS platform is an obvious next step for development and we believe the data we have collected and continue to collect can be used advantageously by our retail partners," added Brian Kelley, Hipiti CTO. "We also see a great opportunity for location-based offers."

In Private Beta since July 2012, Hipiti already has thousands of users. Hipiti is currently self-funded.

About Hipiti

Founded in 2012 by Kristin Flink Kranias and Rama Katkar, Hipiti combines over 2 years of background data analytics with an advanced and highly-customizable platform that takes the retail sale clutter out of your inbox. Hipiti strives to be the most dependable source of the best sale and promotion code information from all your favorite retailers and currently features almost 150 featured high-end stores and brands. Visit hipiti.com for more information.