Forum3, a company that helped Starbucks Corp. to launch its NFT-based loyalty rewards program, announced that it has raised $10 million in seed funding to expand its Web3 tools for brands to launch their own NFT-based rewards programs.
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GLOForum3, a company that helped Starbucks Corp. to launch its NFT-based loyalty rewards program, announced that it has raised $10 million in seed funding to expand its Web3 tools for brands to launch their own NFT-based rewards programs.
Decasonic, Bloccelerate, Liberty City Ventures, Arca, Polygon Ventures and Valor Siren Ventures participted in the funding round.
Nonfungible tokens are a type of Web3 technology, also known as the decentralized web, built on top of blockchains that represent the ownership of digital items such as artwork, music and video game items. Forum3 uses NFTs to create Web3-based loyalty and customer engagement solutions for businesses using branded digital collectibles such as stamps, images and figures.
This new funding comes shortly after the announcement of the launch of Starbucks Odyssey, a Web3-based extension of the Starbucks Rewards program. Using the technology, customers would participate in activities that allow them to earn “Journey Stamps,” which are NFTs, and Odyssey Points, which open up the availability for customers to purchase limited edition merchandise, get discounts and provide access to exclusive content such as online classes.
“At Starbucks, we are committed to a never-ending pursuit of innovation that will surprise and delight our customers and enable us to form more deeply connected relationships,” said Brady Brewer, chief marketing officer at Starbucks. “Our partnership with Forum3 has been instrumental in shaping the design and implementation of Starbucks Odyssey, our next innovation with Starbucks Rewards, powered by Web3 technologies.”
Forum3 was co-founded by its Chief Executive Officers Adam Brotman and Andy Sack. Brotman formerly served as the chief digital officer at Starbucks and did extensive work on the company’s mobile app as its senior architect. “I’m passionate about the use of storytelling and digital collectibles as an entirely new form of loyalty, that we call experiential loyalty,” said Brotman, commenting on the news.
In particular, Forum3 works to make it easier for brands to take advantage of the benefits of Web3 technologies without requiring customers to have advanced knowledge of blockchain technology, crypto or NFTs. For example, Forum3’s technology doesn’t require special NFT wallets, and Starbucks Rewards members can simply use their own accounts to receive the stamps and NFTs to access virtual experiences.
Forum3 commented that the seed funding will be used to build out its own platform to help companies create their own digital collectible and customer engagement strategies using Web3 technology.
