Vestigate Invites Android Users to Check Out Venues Before They Leave the House

For founders Krissy Schuh and Sally Kushner, the original idea evolved.  

“Originally, it was supposed to be similar to Yelp,” Schuh says now with a smile. “I lived on a hill, and I used to go to this bar that was at the bottom of the hill. It was sort of the neighborhood place to be.  Sometimes before making the walk down the hill I’d think, ‘I wish I could see what’s going on there before I get there. So, as it often goes, necessity became the mother of invention.”

Schuh and Kushner developed the Vestigate app for iOS devices first, then began making the rounds in Los Angeles. At first, Schuh acknowledges, it wasn’t an easy sell. “’We want to put our camera in your bar and display it to the world’ sounds a little odd,” she admits. “There’s a huge trust factor in this. These bar owners are looking for someone that they can trust.”

Fast forward a year, quite a few venue owners trust Schuh and Kushner. The app has been growing quickly and has partnered with hot spots in West Hollywood, Hollywood, Venice, CA, and Key West, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Some of the venues Vestigate is partnered with include The Powder Room, Bourbon Street Pub, Venice Ale House, and St. Felix West Hollywood.

And now Vestigate is expanding to include Android users. The Android version of the Vestigate app will be available for download on the Google Play Store this month.

Not only does Vestigate give mobile users a simple know-before-you-go view, but it also helps businesses pull in traffic. With the current expansion to the Android market, Vestigate actually introduces these businesses to a whole new segment of their target audience including new customers. “It’s a no-effort way to market your food and beverage business that simply isn’t available anywhere else,” Schuh says.

Now that the app has expanded to both Android and iOS mobile users, what’s next for Vestigate? “We are planning to partner with many bars around the country, and enter new markets within the next twelve months,” Schuh says. With a whole new segment of the mobile-using audience now able to take advantage of the app, Vestigate may be even more appealing to new venues.    

About Vestigate

Vestigate is a mobile app that gives users a live, real time look inside restaurants and bars, allowing patrons to make better decisions about how to spend their evenings with friends and family. Vestigate’s founders are Krissy Schuh and Sally Kushner.  For more information, please visit www.thevestigate.com.

About Krissy Schuh

Krissy Schuh is the Chief Executive Officer of Vestigate. Prior to launching Vestigate in 2015, Schuh served as Chief Operating Officer at LiveUniverse, a web-based company featuring online live user generated content. For over 20 years, she worked in various roles at NBC, CBS, FOX Sports, Hallmark Channel, First Look Studios and Hollywood Studios International. Originally from Colorado, Schuh earned her B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Southern California. In her spare time, Schuh enjoys tending to her several rescue pets, including a pot-bellied pig.

About Sally Kushner

Sally Kushner is President of Vestigate. Kushner attended the University of Michigan for her undergraduate degree, and Michigan State University College of Law to obtain her Juris Doctorate. Before launching Vestigate, Kushner was a litigator and partner at a Los Angeles law firm. When she’s not finding the next gem to add to Vestigate’s roster of clubs, restaurants, and bars, Kushner enjoys going to her favorite spin class.

If you would like more information about this topic, please call Krissy Schuh at (424)355-4921, or email krissy@thevestigate.com.